The Mega Franchise Cricketing Event, the Indian Premier League, is back for its 18th season. This time, the teams have been shuffled after a Mega Auction, making every team look new on paper, except their retained players.
As the tournament is just a month away from starting, the BCCI has released the fixtures, with the season kicking off on March 22. The Defending Champions, Kolkata Knight Riders, will face the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the opener. A complete fixture list has been released, with matches scheduled to take place at 13 venues.
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In this context, the Mumbai Indians will take on the Chennai Super Kings in their first match on March 23 in Chennai. However, Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya will miss this match due to a suspension he must serve as a result of a slow-over rate offense from the previous season.
In the last season, he incurred a 2-point penalty. In the last match against the Super Giants, he was fined for a third offense, leading to his one-match suspension, as that game was the final match of the last season. He will be serving this suspension in the season opener against the Chennai Super Kings.
Hardik Pandya was brought back by the Mumbai Indians, who appointed him as captain, replacing Rohit Sharma. This decision received significant backlash from fans, who were unhappy with the captaincy change, creating both on-field and off-field stress for Pandya. He faced boos from the crowd during games and criticism on social media, putting him under immense pressure.
As captain, his performance suffered, and his decision-making was poor, which resulted in multiple fines for slow-over rates—three times, to be exact. Notably, the Mumbai Indians were the first team eliminated from the last season, finishing in last place, 10th in the points table.
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As the new season begins, fans have started to appreciate the changes, and with his tough phase behind him, Hardik Pandya is ready to embrace his new self. Unfortunately, he still has to serve the suspension for the slow-over rate violation he committed in the last match of the previous season. Keep an eye on Hardik Pandya as he continues to lead the Mumbai Indians in this season.
