Amid reports that captain Hardik Pandya could leave MI, ex-India cricketer Subramaniam Badrinath said, "If I am MI, I would trade Hardik for Shivam Dube and Ayush Mhatre from CSK." "A core trio of Sanju Samson, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Hardik will take the CSK brand to a different level," he added. MI finished ninth on the IPL 2026 points table.