Mumbai Indians are arguably the most-talked-about franchise ahead of every IPL season and the 2024 edition is no different. The seeds of it had been sown after shock captaincy switch from Rohit Sharma to Hardik Pandya despite the former spearheading the Mumbai Indians to unparalleled heights. This adds to the saga of Hardik leaving the Gujarat Titans, whose strong foundation he shaped from scratch, evidenced by their two years of dominance since debuting in 2022.
The press conference held on Monday (March 18th, 2024) further spiced up things ahead of Mumbai Indians' opening clash against Hardik's former team, Gujarat Titans. With a journalist asking a question regarding the captaincy clause, both Hardik and head coach Mark Boucher conveniently avoided it, sparking further doubts about the ripples between the incoming and outgoing captain.
Mumbai Indians gather formidable fast-bowling cartel, but injury cloud looms:
When it comes to their on-field preparations, Mumbai Indians had a promising IPL auction as they purchased the likes of Nuwan Thushara, Dilshan Madushanka, Gerald Coetzee to bolster what was a depleted attack last year. But the mercurial Madushanka and Coetzee are currently nursing injuries and loom doubtful for the initial half of the season.
Suryakumar Yadav, one of their most reliable run-getters who recently underwent a surgery, also joins the list of doubtful starter after undergoing . Yet, it goes without saying that the five-time champions have some immensely talented players and proven match-winners. Expect the likes of Nehal Wadhera, Tilak Varma, and Akash Madhwal to carry their game to the next level.
A key switch with the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) also occurred, which the five-time champions could rue later in the season despite Cameron Green's strong debut season.
The 2024 edition also lingers as a critical one for Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan, both of whom are trying to find a clear path from their individual struggles. However, it is the captaincy saga that emerges as the key sub-plot for the decorated franchise and it will be interesting to see how Hardik can steer them through it.
It's not only the captaincy, but also his own individual contributions that must be in sync if Mumbai Indians are to break the pattern of not being at their best since 2020.
