Despite Mumbai Indians (MI) concluding at the bottom position in the previous season’s points table, Hardik Pandya is confirmed to continue as the team’s captain for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season. However, the Indian all-rounder faces another setback in his IPL career as he is expected to miss the first game for his team due to a ban.
Team India’s T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav is set to lead MI in Hardik’s absence. You might wonder why Hardik faces an unexpected ban for MI’s opening match of IPL 2025. The main question arises as to why BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) banned Pandya before the commencement of the IPL’s 18th season.
Recently, the 31-year-old Indian cricketer has risen to the No.1 position in the newly released ICC Men’s T20I rankings on Wednesday (November 20). But, the MI captain’s joyful moment seems to be short-lived as he registered a negative remark in his cricket career.
Among the list of retained players for the next edition, Hardik Pandya is one of those five capped Indian cricketers who secured his spot in the squad of the five-time IPL champions.
Why Hardik Pandya Faces a Ban Ahead of IPL 2025 Season?
The Mumbai Indians (MI) team under Hardik Pandya’s captaincy has committed the offense of slow over-rate in three matches of the previous IPL season, which resulted in his ban ahead of IPL 2025.
According to BCCI’s rule, a captain is subjected to be fined INR 12 lakhs due to the slow-over rate offense, and violating the law for three teams would result in offering a ban for one match.
If any team’s captain is found guilty under the slow over-rate act, then these are the penalties to be faced:
- First Offense: INR 12 Lakhs
- Second Offense: INR 24 Lakhs (also other players would be fined).
- Third Offense: INR 30 Lakhs and Ban for one match (also other players would be fined).
In addition, the fielding team will be penalized by permitting only four fielders outside the 30-yard circle instead of five for the remaining overs in an inning due to maintaining a slow over-rate
First Slow Over-rate Offense for MI in IPL 2024: 33rd Match vs PBKS
On April 18, Mumbai Indians secured a 9-run thrilling victory against Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Mullanpur as Akash Madhwal maintained his calmness shouldering a huge responsibility to defend 13 runs in the last over.
Experienced players such as Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah came to assist the MI’s captain’s decision ahead of the crucial final over to claim their third victory in that season after facing 4 out of 6 losses. However, Hardik’s team was 2 overs behind the innings timer and were allowed to place four fielders near the boundary.
As it was MI’s first over-rate offense in IPL 2024, the captain had to face a penalty of INR 12 crores.
Second Slow Over-rate Offense for MI in IPL 2024: 48th Match vs LSG
Defending a subpar target of 145 at Ekana Stadium on April 30, the MI bowlers tried their best efforts to slow down Lucknow Super Giants’ (LSG) run chase. In such an attempt, Hardik Pandya and his team were involved in committing their second slow over-rate offense in the season. This resulted in the MI captain being fined INR 25 Lakhs. Unfortunately, MI’s bowlers’ efforts went in vain as LSG succeeded in accomplishing the target with a 4-wicket victory and 4 balls remaining.
Additionally, the other team members included in the playing XI along with the Impact player had to face a penalty of INR 6 Lakhs or 25% deduction of their match fees, a comparison of whichever is lower between these two.
Third Slow Overrate Offense for MI in IPL 2024: 67th Match vs LSG
Mumbai Indians (MI) concluded their IPL 2024 campaign on a disappointing note against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on May 17. Hardik Pandya’s led side not only lost the game by 18 runs but also faced their third penalty in the season as well as the second against the same team.
LSG batting first posted a huge total of 214-6 in 20 overs and MI bowlers under pressure fell short of maintaining the over-rate in the first innings.
This time the penalty was severe as Hardik was fined INR 30 Lakhs and was banned for his next match, which is the first game for MI in IPL 2025. Also, the other members of the playing XI and impact players were penalized INR 12 Lakhs or a 50% deduction of their match fees, based on the lower value between these two.
↻ 5 Most Impressive Test Scores of Virat Kohli on Australian Soil
Conclusion:
IPL 2025: Mumbai Indians missing out on their captain Hardik Pandya in the first game won’t be a worrying factor as the entire team delivered a poor performance under his captaincy in the last season.
Moreover, Suryakumar Yadav’s recent success rate as India’s T20I skipper could help the franchise start their next season with a convincing win, which could be a motivating aspect for MI to consistently perform well in the next matches.
At present, Hardik Pandya is set to play for Baroda under his brother Krunal Pandya’s captaincy in the forthcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) 2024. The 17th edition of the tournament highlights Hardik’s participation in domestic cricket contests after a long gap.
