Hardik Pandya's potential move to Mumbai Indians can cause a major shuffle in the 2022 IPL champions Gujarat Titans' camp. The all-rounder was signed by the new-born franchise Gujarat Titans for INR 15 Crore ahead of the 2022 mega auctions in their draft. He took the Titans to great heights, making them victorious in their maiden edition itself and then helping them to finish second a year later.
As per a report by ESPN Cricinfo, Pandya is now set to move back to his home - Mumbai Indians, where he began his IPL career in 2015. From being a youngster, Pandya scaled heights - in both the IPL and Indian team - to become a force that he is now in International cricket. However, GT might be left with a major headache if the news becomes official. They will have to put a new leader to not only lead them but also build a team ahead of the upcoming auctions. Here is a list of 5 players who can replace the 30-year-old GT captain as their new skipper.
1 - Shubman Gill: Young sensation Shubman Gill can be a potential candidate for captaincy. Gill is in some serious form of his life and has smacked runs for fun in 2023. In his short career, Gill already has scored 9 International centuries and 3 IPL tons. He has 18 fifties for India and 18 in IPL too. Bestowing an additional responsibility on him can prove to be a good idea to see how well he leads a team.
2 - Kane Williamson: If Shubman Gill might be too young, GT have a wealth of experience in Kane Williamson. The New Zealand skipper is already a World Test Championship winner and an ODI World Cup runners-up - all as captain of the Blackcaps. He played only one match in IPL 2023 and got injured but can be a masterstroke for a captain's pick.
3 - Dasun Shanaka: Sri Lanka's Dasun Shanaka also has experience of captaining a national side. He is at the helm of Sri Lanka and led the Lankan Lions to the Asia Cup 2022 win. Shanaka was called in as a replacement for Williamson in the previous IPL season.
4 - Rashid Khan: Another option for captaincy can be Rashid Khan. The spin wizard is one of the hardest bowlers to play against. He has a wealth of experience in IPL and has also led Afghanistan across the three formats.
5 - Matthew Wade: Australia's Matthew Wade is another option for captaincy. Wade is currently leading Australia in a five-match T20I series against India. He has led Australia in 7 T20Is before this series too. Wade is also a T20 World Cup winner, being a part of Australia's squad in the 2021 T20 World Cup win.
