Abhinav Mukund said Mumbai Indians would come out ahead in the proposed Hardik Pandya-Arshdeep Singh swap
Mumbai Indians and Punjab Kings are working on a deal that was close to completion
Mukund questioned how Hardik Pandya would fit into Punjab Kings’ set-up under Shreyas Iyer
Former India batter Abhinav Mukund said Mumbai Indians will benefit more from the proposed Hardik Pandya-Arshdeep Singh swap. Mumbai Indians and Punjab Kings are working on a deal that was close to completion.
Only official confirmation remains. It will be a major IPL trade in recent memory, with Pandya set to move to Punjab Kings and Arshdeep to Mumbai Indians if it goes through. Many fans and pundits have already started sketching out the likely XIs for both teams to see who ends up with the better deal.
Mukund’s view adds a clear line to the debate over which side benefits more. He said Mumbai Indians would come out ahead, while Punjab Kings would have to answer questions around Pandya’s role and dressing-room balance.
Mukund Questions Punjab Fit
Mukund sees a problem.
"When you look back at the mega auction, they (Punjab Kings) chose to spend a bulk of their money on three big players like Arshdeep, Shreyas (Iyer) and (Yuzvendra) Chahal. If you don't have faith in that core and want a better core to be retained, that's where the all-rounder question comes in," Mukund told JioStar.
He then questioned where Pandya would fit in Punjab’s set-up under Shreyas Iyer. "It's a great deal for Mumbai, but it's also a questionable deal for Punjab Kings because if Hardik comes to Punjab, does he play as just an all-rounder?" he said.
Mukund also raised the issue of team dynamics. "He would play under Shreyas Iyer. So, there is that team dynamics question as well. Once again, is he okay with it? Has Shreyas had conversations about it? These are all things done behind closed doors," he added.
Shedge And MI Upside
Shedge could feel the impact.
Mukund said the trade could cloud the future of Suryansh Shedge, the all-rounder Punjab Kings had heavily invested in. "I'm very curious to see how Suryansh would react. This is a guy who's now playing for India A as an all-rounder, playing for India as an all-rounder, and is looked at as the next in line after maybe Nitish Reddy, Shivam Dube and then him
"So, clearly, he must be thinking about whether he would get as many opportunities if that trade does happen," he said.
For Mumbai Indians, Mukund’s case is simpler. If Arshdeep joins Jasprit Bumrah, MI could field a strong new-ball attack and move on from the Hardik experiment.
