Not Shreyas Iyer, but this Cricketer will Captain Mumbai after Ajinkya Rahane

Rahane Steps Down as the Captain of Mumbai

Speaking on social media platform X, Rahane said that it was a great honour for him to lead Mumbai to the championship and title win. Rahane said that the time has come to groom a new face as the captain of the team, but added that he will continue to give his best for the team as a player. The veteran led the team to record Ranji Trophy wins in 2023-24 and the Irani Cup in 2024. Explaining his decision, Rahane said that this is the right time to groom a new captain for Mumbai. Although Rahane was the captain of the Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2025, the team did not perform well under his captaincy, and the team also failed to reach the play-offs. On one side, in his captaincy, the team was unsuccessful in reaching the playoffs, while Shreyas Iyer was the captain of KKR in the previous season, i.e. IPL 2024, and the title was won during his captaincy.

Who will be the New Captain?

According to the reports, the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) has set its sights on Shardul Thakur. Thakur has been named as the next captain, replacing Rahane ahead of the new domestic season. Thakur has already been named as the captain of the West Zone team for the Duleep Trophy 2025, which will kick off the new domestic season.

But a question springs to mind: wasn't Iyer the best option after Rahane? He is already Mumbai's limited-overs captain, and has led the team in both the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) and the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT). In the Indian Premier League (IPL), too, he is probably the most successful captain in the last five years. He has led teams like Delhi Capitals (DC) and Punjab Kings (PBKS) to the finals. We all remember how he led the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to the IPL 2024 trophy. 

Rahane, who is going to play his 19th first-class season this year, has been dropped from the West Zone squad for the Duleep Trophy. His Mumbai teammate Shardul Thakur has been made the captain in his place. Meanwhile, CSK’s young batter Ayush Mhatre has been named captain of the Mumbai team in the ongoing Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament. He had a stellar season in Ranji Trophy, scoring 505 runs, rescuing Mumbai from difficult situations on several occasions and also took 35 wickets in 18 innings last season, all of which earned Thakur a place in the Indian team for the recent Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025.

Is There Any Good News Coming For Shreyas? 

Despite Shreyas Iyer's stellar performance for some time now, there has been bad news for him, be it the defeat in the final of IPL 2025, the final of the T20 Mumbai League or recently being dropped from the Indian team for the Asia Cup 2025. But nobody knows what will happen next in Indian cricket. Just a few days back, Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee dropped strong hints at making Shubman Gill the all-format captain by appointing him the vice-captain of the Asia Cup-bound T20I squad. But now it has been revealed that the Board and selectors are looking at a different option for the ODIs. The BCCI is reportedly considering Iyer to be the next captain of India's ODI team. However, the BCCI has not taken any official decision yet, and no BCCI official has given any comments on it. A report suggests that Iyer is being seen as a long-term option to lead India in the 50-over format, possibly until the 2027 World Cup. We will know the truth of these reports in the coming time, but a ray of hope has definitely arisen for Shreyas Iyer after long disappointments.