Mumbai Indians – IPL 2021 Preview
Mumbai Indians has been the most successful franchise of the IPL. Mumbai Indians’ journey can be divided into two parts – before and after Rohit Sharma’s captaincy. Mumbai Indians won their first IPL title in 2013 and they haven’t looked back ever since. They have five IPL titles, the most achieved by any team in the tournament. It is said that the IPL title is reserved for MI every odd year. MI has been a balanced side since the beginning of the IPL, with cricket legends such as Sachin Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting, Jonty Rhodes, Harbhajan Singh, Anil Kumble and Muttiah Muralitharan playing different roles to guide this team to where it is today.
Let’s take a look at the team’s performance so far and find out what to expect in the IPL 2021.
Through the Years in IPL
Mumbai Indians are an Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise based in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It has been a part of the IPL from the league’s very first season. Since the beginning of the IPL, MI has been one of the teams with a large fan base. MI’s best buy to date has been captain Rohit Sharma. Under his leadership, the team has excelled and achieved new heights and it will undoubtedly continue to do so in upcoming seasons.
MI has a fantastic record of 118 wins out of 203 matches played. They have qualified for 6 IPL finals and have won 5 of them. They won the IPL in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020. MI has a strong track record not only in the IPL but also in the Champions League Twenty20. They have won two Champions League championships, the first in 2010 when they defeated RCB in the final, and the second in 2013.
The key to this team’s success has been forming a core group of players and then trying with various combinations of players in addition to the core group. In recent years, the team’s core players have included Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav and Krunal Pandya. Keeping this set of players in the playing 11 has allowed them to go out and play their natural game without fear of being dropped. This has worked well for MI and is the major reason for its success. This team has a lot of international experience. Moreover, MI is known for giving opportunities to young talents and has unearthed cricket talents from Mumbai’s local grounds. Pandya brothers being picked to play for MI in the IPL is just one of many examples of MI discovering talent.
The Mumbai Indians had the highest brand value in 2020. The estimated brand value of the franchise is INR 761 crore. This season, Rohit Sharma will captain the team, and Mahela Jayawardene will serve as head coach.
Rohit Sharma is the fourth-highest run-scorer in the history of the IPL. He has 5230 runs in 200 games with a batting average of 31.31. He is also MI’s leading scorer. Along with him, Kieron Pollard is Mumbai Indians’ second-highest run-scorer. Pollard has 3023 runs in 164 games, for an average of 29.93. Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan are young and talented batsmen in the squad of Mumbai Indians. Quinton de Kock adds to the firepower of this team by opening the innings for MI.
Bowlers.
MI’s current bowling attack is weaker than it was when Laith Malinga, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh led the bowling attack. Nevertheless, this bowling attack, led by Jasprit Bumrah, is capable of destroying even the strongest batting lineups.
Lasith Malinga has the best bowling records for MI, with 170 wickets in 122 matches at a 7.14 economy rate. Malinga is also the IPL’s all-time top wicket-taker. He has retired from franchise cricket and will not be a part of the MI squad in the IPL 2021.
The bowling attack is led by Jasprit Bumrah, who was discovered by MI and introduced into franchise cricket before appearing in any international matches for India. Bumrah has 109 wickets in 92 matches with an economy rate of 7.41. MI’s bowling lineup features Trent Boult and Dhawal Kulkarni.
Rahul Chahar is a young talent in MI’s bowling lineup who has proven to be successful with his spin. Chahar has taken 15 wickets in the previous 15 matches and there is a possibility that Rahul Chahar will be MI’s top wicket-taker in the IPL 2021.
All-rounders.
This franchise has some outstanding all-round players. The duo of Hardik Pandya and Krunal Pandya contribute to the team not only with their bats but also with their bowling abilities, which enable them to claim wickets. Kieron Pollard has also played brilliantly with both bat and bowl, leading the team to victory on his own on many occasions.
Hardik Pandya has 1349 runs in 80 matches at an average of 29.97 and he has 42 wickets in 80 games with an economy of 9.06. Pollard has the best bowling figures among all-rounders. He has claimed 60 wickets in 164 matches, with an economy rate of 8.87.
Let’s take a look at the players who have been retained and released by MI ahead of the IPL 2021 season.
| Players Retained | Players Released | |
| Rohit Sharma, Quinton de Kock, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan (WK), Chris Lynn, Anmolpreet Singh, Saurabh Tiwary, Aditya Tare, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Anukul Roy, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult, Rahul Chahar, Jayant Yadav, Dhawal Kulkarni, Mohsin Khan. | Lasith Malinga, Mitch McClenaghan, James Pattinson, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Sherfane Rutherford, Prince Balwant Rai, Digvijay Deshmukh. |
MI released four of their overseas fast bowlers. In the IPL auction 2021, they needed to go for fast bowling options. MI has a well-balanced team that has covered all of its bases. So, MI’s sole goal for this auction was to acquire high-quality fast bowling options.
Nathan Coulter-Nile was MI’s most expensive purchase, costing INR 5 crore. Although he was released by the franchise just before the auction, team management decided to bid on him and reunite him with the squad. The MI team management chose Adam Milne, a fast bowler from New Zealand, for INR 3.2 crore. MI also made a bid of INR 50 lakh for James Neesham. This increases the bench strength of this team’s all-round players. MI achieved a deal when they paid INR 2.4 crore for Piyush Chawla. This has increased the power of its spin attack.
MI surprised everyone by selecting Marco Jansen, a young South African fast bowler. They paid INR 20 lakh for him. Marco Jansen is yet another young talent spotted by MI and brought into franchise cricket. Another young talent that was added to the team was Arjun Tendulkar, a young Indian fast bowler bought for INR 20 lakh.
| Players Bought (Price in INR) | |
| Nathan Coulter Nile (INR 5 crore), Adam Milne (INR 3.2 crore), Piyush Chawla (INR 2.4 crore), James Neesham (INR 50 lakh), Yudhvir Charak (INR 20 lakh), Marco Jansen (INR 20 lakh), Arjun Tendulkar (INR 20 lakh). |
ImportanImportant Players in IPL 2021
Mumbai Indians has the most balanced squad among all IPL franchises. They have the ideal combination for their playing eleven. They are comfortable with continuing with the same team in the IPL 2021, with a few minor changes in the fast bowling department, since they have retained the maximum number of players in the squad.
In the recently concluded IND vs ENG series, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan were in great form. There is no doubt, they will continue their great performance in the IPL as well, and these are the batsmen to watch out for.
Krunal Pandya had some brilliant knocks in the IND vs ENG ODI series, as well as a good economy rate. This season, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya and Kieron Pollard will be game-changers for MI.
Jasprit Bumrah, Nathan Coulter-Nile and Trent Boult will form a devastating fast bowling attack, while the spin duo of Piyush Chawla and Rahul Chahar can work wonders on Indian pitches.
ConclusiConclusion
This is a chance for MI to make a hat trick of the IPL title wins. If MI wins the tournament this year, they will be the first franchise to do so. MI would have to experiment with different combinations in the bowling lineup before they find the ideal combination. Since Jasprit Bumrah will be returning from a brief break from cricket and there are new fast bowlers in this team, along with Piyush Chawla. It may take a few games for the team to gel.
It will be exciting to see who MI has to give in terms of new young talent this year. They have a wide range of players and several options for playing eleven. MI has a good chance of winning the IPL in 2021 and defending their title yet again.
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