Former England captain Michael Vaughan has called on Mumbai Indians to move on from Hardik Pandya as captain and has proposed a player swap with Kolkata Knight Riders.
Vaughan’s proposal
Vaughan believes MI should end what he calls their experiment with Hardik sooner rather than later after another disappointing season. Speaking on a cricket discussion show, he suggested MI release Hardik and bring in Cameron Green, and said that if Hardik wants to keep captaining he would be better off with a new set of leaders, perhaps at KKR, who he expects to need a new captain.
The comments come after MI lost to KKR at Eden Gardens in their penultimate match, which has increased scrutiny of Hardik’s leadership and his impact as an all-rounder.
The Green connection
Green played for MI in IPL 2023, scoring 452 runs in 16 matches at a strike rate of 160.28, including a century against Sunrisers Hyderabad, and took six wickets. When Hardik joined MI ahead of IPL 2024, Green was traded to Royal Challengers Bengaluru. KKR then bought him for INR 25.20 crore at the 2026 mini auction.
MI’s recent record
Under Hardik, MI have struggled for consistency. They missed the playoffs in two of the last three seasons and finished bottom in 2024. The one exception was 2025, when they reached the playoffs and went out in Qualifier 2. They are heading for another poor finish in IPL 2026.
