Former India batter Sadagoppan Ramesh has shared his views on the Hardik Pandya trade saga ahead of the TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2027. Pandya, who had a poor season with the five-time champions Mumbai Indians (MI) as captain and as an all-rounder, is reportedly set to leave the franchise, and there have been other teams that have expressed interest to acquire the service.
Sadagoppan Ramesh believes that despite the talks of Hardik Pandya possibly joining Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in a trade deal, the franchise should not go for the deal. CSK are in desperate need of a reliable all-rounder in the middle-order, and Pandya has provided the reliability over the years.
Sadagoppan Ramesh sheds light on Hardik Pandya’s trade rumours
While speaking on his YouTube channel, Ramesh said that CSK has got the likes of Shivam Dube, Ayush Mhatre and Dewald Brevis who are in talks to be added to the trade deal to bring in someone like Hardik into the squad. He also questioned the management, urging them not to trade any young players for someone like Hardik and also not make him the captain if he joins.
“There are a lot of speculations around this with several players like Dube, Mhatre and Brevis being mentioned. But the biggest question is whether CSK needs Hardik Pandya. The answer is both yes and no. Firstly, there is no way CSK should let go of youngsters.”
“Yet, CSK are in desperate need of proven players. So as a player, CSK needs Hardik Pandya. But, he is absolutely not needed as a captain,” Ramesh said on his YouTube channel.
Sadagoppan Ramesh slams Hardik Pandya as captain
Sadagoppan Ramesh also pointed out that for the poor performance of the Mumbai Indians side last season, primarily due to Hardik Pandya’s form, as he failed to step up with the bat and ball throughout the season. MI finished 9th in the points table and failed to qualify for the playoff stages.
“I’ve always seen Hardik Pandya as two parts – an extraordinary cricketer and a poor captain. Yes, he led GT to the title. But it has become clearer once he left GT that even without him as captain, GT has not suffered.”
“They just reached the final again. But see where the team he captained, MI, has been in the same timeframe. Thus, it’s clear that beyond his captaincy, certain things have clicked in GT,” he added.
Hardik Pandya’s record as MI captain
Pandya left MI and joined Gujarat Titans (GT), where he helped them win their maiden and only IPL trophy in 2022. Then he came back in 2024 for his second stint with the five-time champions. However, things did not turn out as he expected, as they had a chaotic season under his leadership and the fans were agitated after Rohit Sharma was removed as captain.
In that season, MI finished at the bottom of the table in the 10th position, winning just four games and losing 10. Then, in the following season in 2025, they had a decent season as they qualified for the playoffs but were knocked out by Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Qualifier 2, and again in 2026 they failed to go to the next round.
Sadagoppan Ramesh explains why MI’s IPL 2026 season failed
Sadagoppan Ramesh also feels that Hardik is not a good captain, but an extraordinary cricketer, as the former believes that Pandya was successful due to Ashish Nehra while the all-rounder worked with him in GT.
“Coming to MI, people can say other senior players’ poor form hasn’t helped him as captain. But his own performance with bat and ball hasn’t helped MI either. Hardik’s own performance hasn’t helped his captaincy.”
“He bowled only 22 overs in 10 matches, which means he has bowled only two overs per game. And he didn’t bowl the important overs often, while also batting too low on most occasions. It shows that he underutilized himself,” said Ramesh
“A good captain is one who leads from the front and faces the music when the situation is most challenging. Hardik did that for GT but failed to do so for MI. Hardik was nowhere to be found in the important moments for MI.”
“The fact that he did all this for GT makes it clear that Ashish Nehra pushed him there. So to get the best out of Hardik Pandya, a good captain and coach is needed,” he further said.
