Mumbai Indians Asked To Release Hardik Pandya, Virender Sehwag Wonders If ‘Rumours’ Are True

Mumbai Indians returned to winning ways, registering their fourth victory of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 campaign after a thrilling win over the Punjab Kings on Thursday. The victory came under the captaincy of Jasprit Bumrah after both Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav missed the fixture. While MI have suggested that Hardik’s absence is due to a back spasm, rumours suggest there is more to the story than meets the eye. Former India opener Virender Sehwag feels Hardik should be released by the franchise if these rumours are true.

As Hardik remains absent from the Mumbai Indians squad, reports of dressing-room discord between him and certain players have emerged. Though Sehwag does not believe all these rumours are true, he feels the franchise should let Hardik go if that is indeed the case.

“If you just talk about cricket, then retain him. But then you have all these rumours, which I’m not sure are true, about some dressing-room tension or off-field issues. If that is true, release him. If false, based on cricket, he must be retained because he is a top-quality player,” he said during a discussion on Cricbuzz. He also mentioned that, personally, he would like to retain Hardik.

“Irrespective of the rumours, I will retain him. You can always put an end to that. Those dressing-room differences, if true, can be settled. Because you have to play as a team. And Hardik is more valuable as a player. Mumbai Indians need him,” he said.

At present, the most expensive player in the IPL is Rishabh Pant, having been bought for Rs 27 crore in the IPL 2025 mega auction. Sehwag feels Hardik is a player whose actual value is the figure Pant received, and not his current salary of Rs 16 crore.

“Remember, he used to play well even when he was not the captain of Mumbai Indians. There were rumours even then. But I would still retain him. In fact, Rs 16.35 crore is very little. He is a Rs 27 crore player,” he added.

Mumbai Indians have two more matches to go before their IPL 2026 season concludes. It will be interesting to see if Hardik makes a comeback to feature in either of the remaining matches.

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