IPL: GT skipper Hardik Pandya returns to MI; Cameron Green joins RCB from Mumbai

All-rounder Hardik Pandya was on Sunday traded from Gujarat Titans (GT) to his former team Mumbai Indians (MI) in a blockbuster move of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) trading window ahead of the 2024 season.

It had been reported recently that Hardik, who led GT to their maiden title in their debut season in 2022, would return to MI.

The move, however, was only confirmed on Sunday evening after the deadline for franchises for announcing their list of retained and released players had passed. Pandya’s name was initially included in the Titans’ list of retained players and he was even named as the captain.

Five-time champions Mumbai Indians, meanwhile, have decided to trade one all-rounder to accommodate another, with Australian all-rounder Cameron Green joining the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).

Hardik played 31 matches for GT and scored 833 runs across the two seasons, while also having taken 11 wickets.

The seam-bowling all-rounder, who currently leads India in T20Is, had made his IPL debut during the 2015 season when MI took on Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

He was part of MI’s title-winning campaigns in 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020, but following a difficult season in 2021 where he scored 127 runs and took just eight wickets, he was then let go by MI ahead of the 2022 season.

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