After Hardik Pandya joining Punjab Kings, the ongoing discussion on captaincy seems to be ending. Hardik himself has called Shreyas Iyer his captain. Meanwhile, Arshdeep Singh has joined Mumbai Indians.
Sports News: Before IPL 2027, Punjab Kings have made a big change in their team. Former Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya will now be seen playing in the Punjab jersey. In his place, fast bowler Arshdeep Singh has become a part of Mumbai Indians. After this trade the question was arising as to who would captain Punjab. But Hardik Pandya has clearly indicated by sharing a post on social media that Shreyas Iyer will take charge of the team.
Update on the captaincy of Punjab Kings as soon as Hardik Pandya arrived
The exchange of players in the teams for IPL 2027 has started. A major trade between Punjab Kings and Mumbai Indians was officially confirmed on Wednesday, 11 November 2026. Under this deal, Hardik Pandya has left Mumbai Indians and joined Punjab Kings. At the same time, Punjab's leading fast bowler Arshdeep Singh will now play for Mumbai team.
After Hardik came to Punjab, the discussion regarding captaincy intensified. The reason for this is his previous captaincy experience. He has taken charge of big teams like Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians. But this time Hardik is joining Punjab as a player. After joining the team, he shared a special message on Instagram supporting Shreyas Iyer and head coach Ricky Ponting.
Hardik Pandya named Shreyas Iyer as his captain
Hardik Pandya started his new journey in a special way by sharing his picture in Punjab Kings jersey. He greeted people in Punjabi and in his message described Shreyas Iyer as his captain and Ricky Ponting as his coach. Hardik also said that he stands with the entire Punjab team. His statement indicated that Shreyas Iyer will be seen captaining in the upcoming season also.
However, after Hardik's arrival, there was speculation about a change in the leadership of the team. Now his support for his captain has put an end to these discussions to a great extent. This is also special because Hardik has held the responsibility of captaincy in IPL continuously since 2022.
Took command of Mumbai after making Gujarat champion
Hardik Pandya started his IPL career with Mumbai Indians in 2015. He was a part of the Mumbai team that won the IPL title four times. After this, in 2022, he joined the new franchise Gujarat Titans and was made the captain. Under the captaincy of Hardik, Gujarat won the IPL trophy in its very first season. Next year i.e. in 2023 also the team reached the finals.
Hardik returned to Mumbai Indians in the year 2024. Here he was given the captaincy in place of Rohit Sharma. He led Mumbai from 2024 to 2026. Now Punjab Kings will be the third franchise of his IPL career. This time he will be seen in the role of all-rounder instead of captaincy.
Shreyas Iyer is captaining Punjab from 2025
Shreyas Iyer was included by Punjab Kings in their team in the mega auction of IPL 2025. He was also given the responsibility of captaincy in the same season. Under the leadership of Iyer, Punjab Kings performed brilliantly in 2025 and reached the finals. However, the team had to face defeat from Royal Challengers Bangalore in the title match.
Earlier, Shreyas had made Kolkata Knight Riders the IPL champion in 2024. Talking about his IPL career, he has so far scored 4,229 runs in 147 matches. He has one century and 32 half-centuries in his name. His best score is 101 runs not out. Now Punjab Kings will try to take advantage of Shreyas's captaincy and Hardik's experience to win their first IPL title.