"You Don't Play For India, State And Get In IPL Directly": Angry Ex-MI Star Blasts Hardik Pandya

The new Indian Premier League (IPL) season beckons and one of the most intriguing aspects of it will be the change of guard in Mumbai Indians. The five-time champions will have a new skipper at the helm in Hardik Pandya, with previous captain Rohit Sharma featuring just as a batter. The move to change captaincy has been one of the most debated topics in the buildup to the IPL 2024. Whether Hardik Pandya can lead his old franchise with success is the question.

In a video, which has been widely shared on social media, former Indian cricket team player Praveen Kumar can be seen being asked this tough question on Mumbai Indians' change in captaincy.

"Did MI take a hurried decision? Or, the decision to make Hardik Pandya captain was the right one?" Praveen Kumar, who has played for Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Kings XI Punjab,  was asked.

"You don't play two months before, you get injured two months before the IPL, you don't play for the country, you don't play for your state in domestic cricket, and just directly play in the IPL. That's not how things work. It's okay to earn money, who is stopping you? There's nothing wrong with that. But you have to play for state and country and now people only give importance to the IPL", Praveen replied.

Former cricketer Praveen Kumar talking about Hardik Pandya how he's fit only for IPL but not for nation or domestic. He also feels Rohit Sharma could have captained 3-4 more years in MI colour pic.twitter.com/2I6Hljvf88

The former pacer advised young players to prioritise international cricket over the Indian Premier League (IPL) and try to balance both things in their careers.

"I have been saying this for long. Paisa kamao, kaun mana kar rha hai? Paisa kamane chahiye