Hardik Pandya chased by two IPL teams; multiple discussions held with one franchise: Report

Two IPL franchises -- Shah Rukh Khan co-owned Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals -- who are looking for new captains, have set their sights on Hardik Pandya, who appears likely to leave the Mumbai Indians.

KKR is reportedly in the lead as the top management of the Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians have held "multiple" discussions over a swap.

Hardik Pandya's IPL trade news

The source who leaked the news to the news agency PTI has not confirmed whether the Mumbai Indians would like an all-cash deal or a trade-off for Pandya, under whom MI finished ninth in the IPL 2026. They managed just one playoff under Hardik in three seasons.

"Ajinkya Rahane was always a stop-gap arrangement for KKR and he was always going to be released after this season. The KKR top brass had approached MI owners towards the end of last season but since Reliance's Annual AGM was round the corner, so at that time IPL trade wasn't the biggest priority," the source told.

More from Firstcricket

"However, it has been learned that KKR has again approached MI top leadership and there has been a few rounds of discussion," the source added.

RR have also joined the discussion by offering a player swap. They are willing to let go of star opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, who also hails from Mumbai.

Interestingly, if Pandya joins RR, he may take over the captaincy from Riyan Parag under the new owners. Pandya is also set to get the KKR captaincy if he moves to Kolkata, as Rinku Singh currently appears unprepared for the top job.

For the unversed, according to IPL trade rules, a player cannot negotiate with teams, and any discussion regarding an all-cash deal or player swap must take place between the franchises.

This means Pandya's next destination will most likely be decided by MI and not the player.