I don't think captaincy change is going to have any bearing on Rohit Sharma's approach: Tom Moody

As the cricketing world prepares for the much-awaited Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season, a notable shift in captaincy within the Mumbai Indians squad has prompted debates and conjectures.

The franchise's decision to hand over the leadership role to Hardik Pandya has raised questions about its potential impact on Rohit Sharma's batting capabilities. However, former Australian cricketer Tom Moody believes that the Indian captain's form will remain unharmed, dismissing any concerns about the captaincy switch affecting his on-field performance.

After a disappointing 2023 season, the five-time IPL champions, Mumbai Indians, made a bold move by bringing back their former all-rounder Hardik Pandya from Gujarat Titans for a staggering INR 15 crores. Pandya, who captained Gujarat Titans to triumph in the IPL 2022 and a second-place finish in 2023, was named as the captain.

Also read: Returning to Mumbai Indians feels like coming back to where it all began: Hardik Pandya

We know what Rohit Sharma is capable of: Tom Moody

Taking over from the long-serving and highly successful Rohit Sharma remains a huge task, however, amidst the uncertainty, the management reiterated their commitment to retaining Rohit's services, highlighting his invaluable contributions to the team over the years.

Addressing the concerns surrounding Rohit Sharma's future involvement with the franchise, Tom Moody firmly believes that the captaincy factor will have little-to-no bearing on the Indian skipper's approach and performance.

In a conversation with Star Sports, Moody emphasized, "We know what Rohit Sharma is capable of doing and how dangerous he is as a player, as he has demonstrated with an Indian shirt on his back. I don't think the captaincy is going to have any bearing on his approach. I think he will go out and play his brand of cricket. He is very confident and owns his own game."

Also read: Rohit Sharma fans bring down Hardik Pandya's poster at Mukesh Patel College in Mumbai

Reflecting on Hardik Pandya's captaincy journey, Moody acknowledged the challenges awaiting him, "They (MI) expect nothing but excellence, which is what you will expect of any high-performance environment. So Hardik's challenge is managing that expectation and allowing himself and his whole team to be able to play with that freedom, without that pressure sort of filtering into the dressing room," he added.

MI will face GT in their opening game of the tournament on March 24 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.