MI replacing 'tired' Rohit with 'fresh' Pandya, says Gavaskar

Former India cricketer Sunil Gavaskar backed Mumbai India's decision to replace long-time captain Rohit Sharma and hand over the reins to Hardik Pandya as he feels that the franchise needs some fresh thinking after underwhelming showings in recent editions.

"The decision taken by Mumbai Indians is for the benefit of their team. In the last two years, Rohit's contributions with the bat were scarce. He used to score heavily, and two seasons ago if I'm not wrong, MI finished last. Last year, they qualified for the playoffs but the josh [spirit] that we are used to seeing in him, has been missing. Perhaps he is tired having played non-stop cricket, or captaining India," Gavaskar told Star Sports.

Pandya led his previous franchise Gujarat Titans to back-to-back finals, winning the first one and finishing as runners-up in the second.

Still, the decision to replace Rohit, who took Mumbai to three IPL titles, continues to divide the fan base, with the franchise losing around half a million followers on Instagram since the announcement.

But Gavaskar strongly feels that it was the right time for the franchise to go for fresh leadership.

"Hardik is a young and fresh captain who has delivered the results. He led Gujarat Titans to two IPL finals and achieved a title once. So pretty sure they made him captain keeping all this in mind. Sometimes you need fresh thinking, and Hardik can bring that. Making Hardik captain may or may not benefit the team, but it sure won't hurt them," Gavaskar added.