Like Showing Mirror To Moon: Aakash Chopra Reacts To Rohit Sharma's Potential Return As MI Captain

Former India opener Aakash Chopra reacted to reports claiming that Rohit Sharma could return as captain of the Mumbai Indians (MI) for the 2027 campaign. The 39-year-old is in line to replace Hardik Pandya, whose three-year tenure in the top job has been nothing short of a nightmare.

Since Hardik replaced Rohit as captain ahead of the 2024 season, MI secured a wooden spoon finish in 2024 and finished 9th in 2026. In 2025, they managed to reach the playoffs but were knocked out in the second qualifier.

Chopra claimed that the rumours about Rohit could be true and said it would be a short-term arrangement. He pointed out that the five-time IPL-winning captain has nothing to prove to anyone.

"I think I read it on Sports Tak. So I think it would be right, and they would have done some verification, or they might have quoted someone. It means some conversation is happening. The Mumbai Indians are reconsidering whether they should go with Rohit Sharma once again for a short-term arrangement.

"Remember one thing - Rohit Sharma doesn't have to prove anything as a captain. I don't have to tell what he would bring as a captain. It's like showing a mirror to the moon. He is a five-trophy-winning captain. He doesn't have to tell what he can do. However, would the Mumbai Indians be looking from that perspective? I am not so sure," said Chopra in a video on his Youtube Channel.

However, he questioned if Rohit was the best option for the role at this stage and gave the names of Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma and Jasprit Bumrah as potential options.

"Is Rohit Sharma the best option? This team has many captains. It has the World Cup-winning captain, Suryakumar Yadav, who isn't playing any other cricket, which means he can serve this team with full attention as a captain. So, he is one candidate. There is another candidate in the form of Jasprit Bumrah if you are not thinking much from the workload management perspective. I am seeing Tilak Varma as the third option. He has already become India's vice-captain in the T20 format, and there is no doubt that he will lead an IPL team in the future, and Mumbai prepare such captains many times. So, three options are clear," Chopra stated.

The cricket-turned-commentator claimed that it is quite clear that Hardik will not stay in the top job for the 20th edition of the tournament.

"One thing we understood is that Hardik Pandya will probably not remain the captain. He did the job for three years, but two years were so ordinary that despite the middle season being decent, it's not going to be good enough. I don't know whether he will go anywhere or not, but I am assuming Hardik Pandya won't be the captain because the Mumbai Indians do course correction, and that's why they are such a successful team," Chopra concluded.

Disclaimer: This article summarises a report by Aakash Chopra. While Times Now has verified the public data presented, the interpretations of 'intent' remain those of the creator.

Aayush Kataria is a Senior Copy Editor at Times Network with five years of experience, having started his career in the organisation. He is a key memb... View More