In the biggest trade deal in the history of the Indian Premier League, Hardik Pandya has joined Punjab Kings (PBKS) in a swap deal that has seen star Indian pacer Arshdeep Singh joining the Mumbai Indians (MI). The former was MI's captain for the last three seasons, which means the five-time champions will have a new skipper in the 2027 edition, but the trade has also raised speculation over who will lead the Punjab-based franchise and Shreyas Iyer's future.

Hardik has been leading a franchise in the IPL for the last five seasons. Before rejoining MI in 2024 and replacing Rohit Sharma, he was the captain of the Gujarat Titans (GT) and created history by leading them to the title in their debut season in 2022 while reaching the final in 2023.

However, Hardik confirmed in his first post since the Indian Premier League's (IPL) governing council confirmed the deal that Shreyas will remain the captain. The star all-rounder also made a special mention of head coach Ricky Ponting, with whom he will be reunited. It is worth remembering that when Hardik made his IPL debut for MI in 2015, Ponting was the head coach of the franchise.

"Sat Sri Akal. My Captain. Shreyas.My Coach. Ricky.My team. All of Punjab.I am standing behind you," wrote Hardik on X.

Shreyas Iyer's Remarkable Captaincy Record

Like Hardik, Shreyas is also a title-winning captain after leading Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to victory in the 2024 season. Since joining PBKS in the 2025 mega auction, he has changed the fortunes of the franchise after leading them to the final in the 18th edition, which marked only the second time they played the summit clash in history. In fact, it was the first time since 2014 that the franchise reached the playoffs.