In the absence of the regular captain Hardik Pandya, the five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians will start the IPL 2025 under a new captain. MI skipper Pandya revealed their captain for their IPL 2025 opener, which will be against the hosts Chennai Super Kings in Chennai on March 23 evening.

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IPL 2025: Captain Hardik Pandya will miss MI's season opener

Hardik Pandya is continuing his leadership role for Mumbai Indians in the IPL 2025. However, due to slow over-rate offences for three times in the IPL 2024, including the last offence occured during their last league stage game of the season, which was also their last fixture of the season, skipper Pandya's one-match suspension has been carried forward for the IPL 2025. So, Hardik Pandya will miss MI's opening match of the IPL 2025, when Chennai Super Kings will host them in the evening of March 23. 

The T20 World Cup 2024 winning captain Rohit Sharma, under whom Mumbai Indians won five IPL trophies, and the present Indian T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav are the strong names for the alternative captain of the Mumbai Indians. Rohit led MI last time in the 2023 season, while Yadav has captained MI once in the 2023 season, when the skipper Rohit was unavailable.  

IPL 2025: Captain Hardik Pandya revealed Suryakumar Yadav would lead MI in their season opener

While there are some reports about Rohit Sharma's leadership role return at least for their IPL 2025 opener, MI skipper Hardik Pandya clarified who would lead the five-time IPL champions in their IPL 2025 first game. Pandya has claimed that Suryakumar Yadav, the present Indian T20I captain, will lead Mumbai Indians in their first fixture of the IPL 2025. So, we can confirm that Yadav will play the vice-captaincy role for Mumbai Indians in the IPL 2025. 

Mumbai Indians will face the hosts Gujarat Titans in their second game of the IPL 2025, when captain Hardik Pandya will return to the MI squad to face his previous leading side as Titans reached the Finals in their first two IPL seasons (2022 and 2023) under his leadership while they were champions in the 2022 edition and runners-up in the 2023 edition. Ahmedabad will host this match on March 29.