2 min readUpdated: Nov 11, 2026 03:27 PM ISTMumbai Indians cricketer Hardik Pandya in action. (FILE photo)The trade speculation over the last few weeks has now become reality, with Hardik Pandya moving to Punjab Kings and Arshdeep Singh joining the Mumbai Indians. However, former Chennai Super Kings cricketer Subramaniam Badrinath said that for Hardik, the move isn’t much of a benefit since he won’t be the captain. Punjab has been led by Shreyas Iyer, who took them to the final in the 2025 season.“For Hardik Pandya, he is probably not in a great win-win situation. He won’t be captain. There were talks that he would only move if he was offered captaincy. He might not be able to do that now and won’t have a say. This is the last year before the mega auction. Punjab will definitely retain him. So he will be retained in that price bracket. If he went to auction, he could go for more. So he will lose out there. So, it is a good trade for MI, a good trade for PBKS, a good trade for Arshdeep, but for Hardik, it is an ok trade, not so super. That’s my opinion,” he said in a video on his YouTube channel.Apart from the captaincy situation, Badrinath felt that as a player, Hardik is an excellent addition to Punjab and so is Arshdeep to the Mumbai Indians because of the attributes they will bring to their respective sides.“Hardik Pandya is the biggest all-rounder in the world for Punjab Kings. The only thing is that he will play under Shreyas as captain. We all know that he won’t be captain. But a super buy. An all-rounder. He has experience. A good hitter down the order. Arshdeep is probably among the best death bowlers in India right now. I think it is a big positive for Mumbai Indians, as he is a left-armer, bowls well, is at his peak and is playing for the Indian team. So it is a win-win for both teams,” he said.© IE Online Media Services Pvt LtdStay updated with the latest sports news across Cricket, Football, Chess, and more. Catch all the action with real-time live cricket score updates and in-depth coverage of ongoing matches.Tags:Hardik PandyaAdvertisementLoading Recommendations...AdvertisementAdvertisement