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The Indian Premier League 2024 retentions had all the buzz around as the biggest development of the day was slated to be a historic trade involving Gujarat Titans captain Hardik Pandya. The trade was said to take Pandya back to his first IPL franchise - Mumbai Indians. Pandya was one of Mumbai's best home-grown players as he developed into a crucial member of MI's four title wins between 2015 and 2020. Pandya also grew into a crucial member of the Indian national team.
Before the retention-announcement day, Hardik Pandya was set for a Mumbai homecoming in an all-cash deal where MI was set to pay Gujarat INR 15 crore ($1.8 million approx) as per ESPNcricinfo. But on November 26, Pandya was still retained by Gujarat Titans as all ten IPL teams announced their squads ahead of the IPL 2024 auction on December 19.
Let us look at why Hardik Pandya will play for Mumbai Indians in IPL 2024:
On retention day, many wondered whether the trade would still go through as Hardik Pandya was retained by the Gujarat Titans. The IPL 2022 champions had to take the step as players released by a franchise can’t be part of any trade deal as that individual would be included in the auction and be available for all teams.
Further, the IPL Trading window is open from seven days after the end of a season until seven days before the Player Auction. The window returns from the day after the Player Auction until 30 days before the start of a new season. Hence, Gujarat and Mumbai can still complete the trade with a possible player swap or an all-cash deal as the window closes on December 12. The trade is more likely to go through as Mumbai Indians will have more funds for the Pandya deal after releasing players like Jofra Archer and Jhye Richardson.
