IPL 2027 Trade Talk: Punjab Kings and Mumbai Indians Discuss Hardik Pandya-Arshdeep Singh Swap
An IPL source told PTI the deal is not done yet; Hardik would join only as a player under PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer, with the retention deadline on 17 November.
Hardik Pandya could be on the move again. Punjab Kings are in advanced discussions with Mumbai Indians over a trade that would send the all-rounder to Punjab in exchange for left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh, news agency PTI reported, citing an IPL source.
The source said both franchises want the deal to happen but stressed that it has not been finalised. Hardik had also been linked with Kolkata Knight Riders, but the source described a move to Punjab as a strong possibility.
Why a move: Hardik returned to Mumbai Indians as captain for the 2024 season, taking over from Rohit Sharma. Things did not go to plan: the five-time champions missed the play-offs twice in his three seasons in charge. Rohit is expected to take back the captaincy for 2027. Hardik has not played since the last IPL because of a series of injuries.
Role at Punjab: Shreyas Iyer will stay on as Punjab Kings captain, so Hardik would join purely as a player, and the source said this had been made clear to him. Punjab reached the final last year, their first since 2014, but a sharp slide in the second half of the 2026 season cost them a play-off spot, and bowling in that phase was a major concern for head coach Ricky Ponting and Iyer.
Letting go of Arshdeep would be a big call for Punjab. He has been with the franchise for a long time and is currently India’s leading wicket-taker in T20 internationals.
Key dates: The BCCI has extended the player retention deadline to 17 November, giving both teams time to complete the paperwork. Punjab could also release Marcus Stoinis and Nehal Wadhera before the mini-auction in Goa on 16 December.
As of the PTI report, the trade had not been completed.
Image: PCA Stadium, Mohali 1.jpg by DeepArjunSingh, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Sources
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