Hardik Pandya is set to leave Mumbai Indians.
New Delhi: Hardik Pandya has become one of the most sought-after players since the all-rounder decided to leave Mumbai Indians (MI) after the five-time champions’ disastrous campaign in the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL).The race to sign the 32-year-old has heated up, and TimesofIndia.com can confirm that seven franchises have expressed interest in landing the all-rounder. Only Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) remained spectators.
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) entered the race late, but have now set up an interesting rivalry with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), while Rajasthan Royals (RR) have also entered the competition. Pandya is a perfect fit for CSK, especially in the post-MS Dhoni era, but there is no guarantee that he will wear the captaincy.
Meanwhile, KKR is looking for a captain and RR are also willing to offer leadership and a long-term role. It will be interesting to see how MI position themselves, given the strong interest in their captain.Communication channels are currently active between MI, CSK and KKR. While the three parties have not confirmed anything yet, various options are being explored. Who will leave CSK? Will it be an all-cash deal? Does KKR have tangible assets to trade? Or will it be an obstacle like the one that occurred in the KL Rahul case last year?CSK remained a patient observer as the hype around Pandya’s move grew stronger.
The five-time champions are timing their entry exactly as they did during the blockbuster trade for Sanju Samson, Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran last season. Currently, CSK is in a very strong position to sign Pandya, but a late hiccup cannot be ruled out as player deals remain a tough business in the IPL ecosystem.
The role of the influential figure in creating CSK could be the key to the direction of the trade.The most important aspect is player buy-in, and it will be interesting to see if Pandya is keen on moving to a franchise without the captaincy. Two highly respected former international leaders also expressed interest, one of whom offered to lead the team, but initial discussions did not materialize into anything meaningful. A new round of talks in the north cannot be ruled out, especially if the talks continue to accelerate in the south.Pandya may not be the only prominent Indian cricketer to be involved in the trade this season. It is learned that MI will have to finalize a player-wide move before addressing the future of one of his teammates. MI and interested franchises are likely to take this into consideration in their negotiations for Pandya. While this may not have a direct impact, it could impact the franchise’s approach to the two potential transactions.
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If MI agrees to an all-cash deal for Pandya, will they do the same for his India and MI teammate? How will other franchises position themselves? There are no immediate answers, but clarity is expected soon. One trade at a time.(We have actively reached out to interested parties Hardik Pandya trade To comment. Story will be updated once we respond.)