'Emphasis isn't actually on cricket in IPL' - Mark Boucher reveals why Mumbai Indians replaced Rohit Sharma as captain
Five-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Mumbai Indians (MI) shocked everyone when they brought back Hardik Pandya from Gujarat Titans ahead of the upcoming IPL 2024 season. Much has been said about the move, with two sides of the coin being addressed equally by critics.
However, in a recent development, one of the people behind this iconic move, Mumbai Indians head coach Mark Boucher has opened up about the decision why the franchise decided to replace Rohit Sharma with Hardik Pandya.
Boucher stressed on the point that captaincy was taking a toll on Rohit and that it was "purely a cricketing decision". Boucher also elaborated that IPL is more than just cricket and the 'emphasis' is not solely on the sport.
Mark Boucher reveals why MI decided to replace Rohit Sharma as skipper
Echoing on the same lines Boucher said on the Smash Sports podcast, “I think it was purely a cricketing decision. We saw the window period to get Hardik back as a player. For me it’s a transition phase. A lot of people don’t understand in India, people get quite emotional But you know you take the emotions away from it.
Boucher added, “I mean one of the things I have spoken about is when you arrive at the IPL and he (Chris Morris) will be able to tell you as well that there’s a lot of stuff going on, there’s photoshoots and this and that and a lot of emphasis is not actually on the cricket. It’s more about the advertising and all that sort of stuff”.
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Mumbai Indians are currently going through a transition phase and senior players like Rohit Sharma will play a pivotal role in guiding the team's direction and providing mentorship to the younger members.
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