Faf Du Plessis Predicts New Captains For LSG, KKR And MI In IPL 2027

The IPL trade market has gathered pace, it seems. Amid several days of rumours, the IPL, in an official release, announced the trade of four players involving Chennai Super Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad. Liam Livingstone and Jack Edwards moved to CSK, while Khaleel Ahmed and Nathan Ellis joined SRH. While there will be a lot of player movement, some teams will need new captains too. Lucknow Super Giants' IPL 2026 captain Rishabh Pant has left the franchise for Delhi Capitals, while Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Ajinkya Rahane has returned. There is also confusion over whether Hardik Pandya, who has led Mumbai Indians for the past two seasons, will stay with the franchise or not.

Former RCB captain Faf du Plessis, in a video on ESPNcricinfo, said that three of the 10 franchises in IPL 2027, Lucknow Super Giants, Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians, could have new captains. According to du Plessis, Aiden Markram or Mitchell Marsh can lead LSG, while Rinku Singh or Hardik Pandya (if he is traded) can captain KKR. Rohit Sharma or Jasprit Bumrah can lead Mumbai Indians.

LSG are yet to win the IPL and have finished seventh in each of the last two editions. KKR too failed to qualify for the IPL playoffs in the last two editions. MI finished ninth among 10 teams in the 2026 edition.

Meanwhile, Punjab Kings (PBKS) have edged ahead of others in the race to secure the services of Hardik Pandya via a trade deal with Mumbai Indians (MI) ahead of the November 17 retention deadline for the 2027 Indian Premier League (IPL) season.

IANS understands that apart from PBKS, who have been very aggressive in vying for Pandya, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) have also been in the running to acquire the premier seam-bowling all-rounder.

"Yes, this is true that as of now, Punjab Kings have their noses ahead to get Pandya. If all falls in place, as per the verbal discussions between the top management of the two teams, the formal paperwork to complete Pandya's trade can start soon and then the approval from the IPL officials will be sought," a source tracking the development told IANS on Tuesday.

Under the proposed swap, if Pandya goes to PBKS, left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh and wicketkeeper-batter Vishnu Vinod are likely to head to MI. Arshdeep is currently in New Zealand, where he is part of India's fast-bowling attack in the five-match ODI series that starts in Auckland on Wednesday.

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