Five-time Indian Premier League (IPL) winners Mumbai Indians will start a new era under the leadership of Hardik Pandya, who returned to the side after spending two seasons at Gujarat Titans. MI went all out for Pandya in a trade deal, spending fortunes to land the star all-rounder. Pandya, who led GT to the IPL honour in their debut season in 2022, helped them finish as runners-up last year.
In Pandya, MI saw someone who could make them future-proof in a period of transition. This meant Rohit Sharma, who led the franchise to five titles, would play as a pure batter. Rohit is entering the fag end of his career and MI expect not having the pressure of captaincy anymore will see Rohit in his best self. Pandya, who hasn’t played competitive cricket since being injured midway through the ICC World Cup 2023, recently made a return to local cricket in a tournament held in Mumbai. Pandya will want to kickstart his journey with a bang given there is the ICC T20 World Cup in June.
Ahead of the IPL 2024 auction, Mumbai allowed Cameron. Green is to be traded to RCB as they move ahead with Pandya. Mumbai retained several top guns ahead of the auction in December, and they then went on to pick some seasoned foreign pacers to bolster their rank. Mumbai have a solid side on offer, and fans expect fireworks from them. Ahead of the IPL 2024 season, we analyse MI’s squad.
Mumbai Indians squad for IPL 2024
Hardik Pandya (captain), Rohit Sharma, Dewald Brevis, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma, Tim David, Vishnu Vinod, Arjun Tendulkar, Shams Mulani, Nehal Wadhera, Jasprit Bumrah, Kumar Kartikeya, Piyush Chawla, Akash Madhwal, Jason Behrendorff, Romario Shepherd, Gerald Coetzee, Dilshan Madushanka, Shreyas Gopal, Nuwan Thushara, Namandhir Singh, Anshul Kamboj, Mohammad Nabi, and Shivalik Sharma.
Strengths of the Mumbai Indians
Pandya’s captaincy will be crucial for MI given he helped GT do nice things. Having played from 2015 to 2021 for MI, Pandya knows the system in and out. Moreover, he will have Rohit to help him whenever needed. This is a massive plus.
MI are a side with a solid pace-bowling unit. Jasprit Bumrah is back for this year’s IPL and he is in menacing form of late across formats. South Africa’s Gerald Coetzee and Sri Lanka’s Nutan Thusara are notable additions. Coetzee shined in the 2019 World Cup held in India, being South Africa’s leading force. Thusara recently became the fourth Sri Lankan cricketer to take a T20I hat-trick. Another Sri Lankan bowler, Dilshan Madushanka, was roped in. He, too, had an excellent World Cup for Lanka and was their best pacer. In addition, the franchise which has consistently backed foreign pacers, have a cushion in Jason Behrendorff, who is a T20 veteran. Romario Shepherd was traded in and he provides cover for David. He owns 125 scalps in T20s and owns over 1000 runs. MI will go heavy with their foreign set of pacers and rotate when needed. Akash Madhwal is a decent option on the bench as an Indian pacer.
Batting of Mumbai breathes class. You have Ishan Kishan, who will want to resurrect his career after seeing his BCCI central contract get quashed. He has been a notable performer in the IPL. Tilak Varma is a rising star, who has already made a rapid stride in his career. In Tim David, MI got one of the best finishers in T20 cricket. He is massive because of his exploits at death. Wadhera played 14 matches last season for MI and gave a decent account of himself. MI also have Dewald Brevis, Vishnu Vinod, and Shivalik Sharma, who recently smashed a career-best 188 in Ranji Trophy. Suryakumar Yadav remains the best batter of the side and will be the key asset.
In the spin section, former Punjab, KKR, and CSK bowler Piyush Chawla had a dream season for MI, picking 21 wickets. He will lead the attack. There is Shams Mulani, who is a seasoned domestic star. His left-arm spin will bolster MI. Kumar Kartikeya, who played 8 matches for MI last season, is the side’s other left-arm spin option. Shreyas Gopal fills up as well. Overall, MI have a decent spin attack if not the best in the IPL.
Weaknesses of Mumbai Indians
Rohit Sharma’s form in terms of batting in the IPL has seen a massive decline. Rohit, who had nine presentable seasons with the bat in the global T20 league, has fallen behind across the last 7 campaigns. He owned 350-plus runs on two counts. Just three fifties across three seasons for an opener shows his lack of bite.
Pandya hasn’t played lately, and so has Kishan, who was absent from the Ranji Trophy. Their form against world-class bowlers will be nervy. Both players can be rusty and take some time to adapt.
MI are a lot dependent on Chawla in spin department. If he endures a difficult season, this is an area where they can struggle. Mulani, who owns over 170 FC wickets, hasn’t yet made his IPL debut. It remains to be seen how he will fit in straightaway and deliver. Kartikeya has 10 wickets across the last two IPL seasons, whereas Gopal hasn’t played much.
Probable Playing XI of MI
Ishan Kishan, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Tim David, Shams Mulani, Gerald Coetzee, Jason Behrendorff, Jasprit Bumrah, Piyush Chawla
Who can be MI’s impact players?
With the Impact Player rule, teams can name five substitutes and use one of them when needed. If four foreign players are already named in the XI, the impact player can only be an Indian. For MI, Wadhera and Chawla can be the right swaps. If they bat first, Wadhera can be included to bolster the line-up. And in bowling, Chawla can then come in for Wadhera. Impact players: Piyush Chawla, Nikhil Wadhera, Kartikeya Sharma, Shivalik Sharma.
Players to watch out for
As per ESPNcricinfo, Tim David has an excellent strike rate of 200.21 in the last four overs in T20 cricket with the bat. In 113 innings, David has smashed 151 sixes and 103 fours. He averages 30-plus.
Suryakumar Yadav is closing in on 7000 T20 runs and 300 sixes. His strike rate of 152.09 is highly impressive.
MI can fight for the IPL 2024 trophy
MI can be one of the challengers for the IPL 2024 trophy. They are right behind CSK in terms of being the favorites. MI have a serious batting department bolstered by a serious pace machinery. And there are sheer match-winners across departments.
Mumbai Indians IPL 2024 schedule
March 24: Gujarat Titans vs Mumbai Indians – Ahmedabad – 7:30 PM IST
March 27: Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Mumbai Indians – Hyderabad – 7:30 PM IST
April 1: Mumbai Indians vs Rajasthan Royals – Mumbai – 7:30 PM IST
April 7: Mumbai Indian vs Delhi Capitals – Mumbai 3:30 PM IST