Hardik Pandya is not in Baroda’s Mushtaq Ali squad, and Mumbai Indians are trading him to Punjab Kings for Arshdeep
Hardik has not played since May because of injuries, and his IPL future is being settled in a one-for-one swap with Punjab Kings.
Nov 8, 2026
Baroda named their squad for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy on Saturday, and Hardik Pandya was not in it. His brother Krunal will captain the side when the tournament starts on 14 November.
Hardik has not played competitive cricket since IPL 2026. His last game was Mumbai Indians’ 30-run defeat to Rajasthan Royals at the Wankhede on 24 May, when he made 34 off 15 balls. He was then picked for India A’s one-day series against Australia A in Puducherry in October, but a fresh shin problem in late September ruled him out of that too, and he is still recovering.
A trade on the same day
Cricinfo reported on Saturday that Mumbai Indians are set to trade Hardik to Punjab Kings in exchange for Arshdeep Singh. According to that report, both franchises have lodged an expression of interest with the IPL. The players then give written consent, the franchises finish negotiating, and the IPL ratifies the deal.
A PTI report went further. It quoted an IPL source who said the trade had been completed, with BCCI ratification still to come before it is official. Neither franchise had announced anything by Sunday morning. Earlier reports had wicketkeeper Vishnu Vinod going to Mumbai with Arshdeep, but the latest describe a straight one-for-one swap.
Shreyas Iyer stays on as Punjab captain, and according to PTI the decision to bring Hardik in was made by Iyer and the coach. Hardik would join as a player only. That leaves Mumbai looking for a new captain, with Kieron Pollard now their head coach and Robin Uthappa named batting coach on 30 October.
Three seasons as Mumbai captain
Mumbai brought Hardik back from Gujarat Titans in an all-cash deal before IPL 2024 and made him captain in place of Rohit Sharma. It never really worked. Mumbai finished last in 2024, made the playoffs in 2025 and came ninth in 2026, losing ten of their 14 games. In 39 games under Hardik they won 15 and lost 24.
The contrast with Gujarat is hard to miss. By Cricinfo’s count he won 22 and lost nine in 31 games there, and his win-loss ratio of 0.625 at Mumbai is the lowest of any IPL captain with at least 30 games in charge.
What Mumbai get in Arshdeep
Arshdeep has played his whole IPL career at Punjab. Since his debut in 2019 he has 111 wickets in 96 games for them, at an economy rate just over nine, and in April he became the first Punjab bowler to reach 100 IPL wickets. At the 2025 mega auction Punjab used their Right to Match card to keep him for ₹18 crore after Sunrisers Hyderabad pushed the bidding.
Mumbai needed a seamer to share the new ball with Jasprit Bumrah. Trent Boult cost them ₹12.5 crore at that same auction and played only five games last season.
The dates that matter
Teams have until 17 November to name their retentions, and the auction is in Goa on 16 December. The Mushtaq Ali final is on 6 December. Punjab would be taking on an all-rounder who has not played since May, and nobody has yet said when he will be fit to play again.