5 Best buys by Mumbai Indians in IPL History

Mumbai Indians are currently one of the strongest and most followed teams in the IPL. Mumbai Indians couldn’t clinch the titles for initial few years even after having star players like Sachin Tendulkar, Shaun Pollock and Sanath Jayasuriya in the team.

After finishing in the bottom half for the first two seasons, they reached the finals of the 2010 edition only to lose to their arch-rivals Chennai Super Kings. They had to wait for 2 more years before winning the trophy in 2013 for the first time.

It has been onwards and upwards thereon as they won 2 more titles in the next 5 years while reaching the playoffs once. In the past 10 years, Mumbai Indians have always been the most enthusiastic team at auctions too by buying the red-hot players who offer a lot of promise.

Richard Levi, Glenn Maxwell are some examples of the same who was bought by the team for a huge price. Ignoring the minor blips at the auctions, Mumbai has always been a smart franchise in choosing the right mix of players from the pool.

We now list you the 5 best buys by Mumbai Indians in the IPL history:

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#1 Lasith Malinga

Lasith Malinga always bowled with a strange action and used the same to baffle the batsmen. Mumbai Indians bought him in 2008 for 350,000 US dollars and he was forced to miss the season due to the knee injury.

Joining the team in 2009, he became a valuable asset to the team as the years proceeded. His toe-crushing yorkers at the beginning as well as in the death overs have been crucial in providing some early breakthrough and in restricting the opponents.

There are numerous matches where Malinga has been a crucial player in the team and is a go-to player for the captains for providing the breakthroughs. Malinga is the leading wicket-taker in IPL with a total of 154 scalps.

Along with winning the purple cap in 2011, he holds numerous other records in IPL. Playing a total of 110 matches he has picked 154 wickets at an excellent economy rate of 6.89. Malinga was appointed as the bowling mentor for the team after he went unsold in this year’s IPL auctions.

#2 Kieron Pollard

Caribbean players have always on the top in the IPL. Be it with some marvelous big hitting with the bat or bowling some tight overs at the death, they have always been the game changers in IPL. Kieron Pollard is one such player who did both and has been an excellent player over the years.

He was bought for 750,000 US dollars in 2010 and satisfied the price tag by playing some crucial knocks in the death. The little cameos at the end to boost the score past 180 and chipping in with one or two wickets with the ball, Pollard played the role of an all-rounder to near perfection.

The reason why they lost the 2010 finals to Chennai Super Kings and the reason for their victory against the same franchise in 2013 final was same. In 2010, the dismissal of Pollard at an important point of game denied the trophy while his match-saving knock of 60 which came in 32 balls after early hick-ups ensured them the trophy against the same team in 2013.

Playing 9 seasons for the team, he has scored 2477 runs in 132 matches while picking 56 wickets with the ball. Though fans expected him to be released from the team after a lackluster season this, they retained him in the team for the next year IPL.

#3 Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma has an array of shots at his disposal and most of them are frame-worthy. Being in Deccan Chargers for first few seasons, he was bought for 2,000,000 US dollars in the year 2011. He has impressed with the bat for the next 2 years and slowly joined the core set of players of the team.

Sharma was given the captaincy in the year 2013 after a poor show from Ricky Ponting and he turned the tables with impressive captaincy skills that helped Mumbai Indians to clinch the title for the first time. He was made the regular captain in the following year.

The captaincy never dented his batting as he continued to put up a good show every year with the bat. Only once in his 5-year stint at Mumbai Indians, he has failed to reach 300 run mark in the tournament. Good batting and excellent captaincy, Rohit has become one of the vital players in the team thus proving his reasons to be in this list.

As expected, he was retained by the team management and the team under his captaincy is expected to roar back after a minor slump this year.

#4 Jasprit Bumrah

The second pacer in the list is Jasprit Bumrah who was bought for 120,000 US dollars in 2014. Jasprit Bumrah is a perfect disciple to Lasith Malinga. The weird action, toe-crushing yorkers, and vitality to the team are something that both of them have in common.

After biding his time in his first two years, he unleashed his skills in the year 2016. Though people criticized his bowling action, the same became the reason for his huge success. He was in his prime form in IPL 2017 as the team went on to win their 3rd title in 5 years. His figures in the last year IPL reads 20 wickets in 16 matches with an impressive strike rate of 17.43.

In his 5 year stint with Mumbai Indians, Bumrah has picked a total of 63 wickets with a strike rate of 21.62. Following his amazing performance with the franchise, he made his national debut too. Jasprit Bumrah will continue to play for Mumbai Indians in the next year IPL after being retained by the team.

#5 Hardik Pandya

Another all-rounder in the list who has gradually gained the trust of the team with some excellent performances is Hardik Pandya. Hardik Pandya was bought for the base price of 10 lakh in 2015 auctions but he has delivered performances which are worth more than his price tag.

Getting to play only limited matches in first 2 years, he made his mark in those opportunities and has groomed himself as the years progressed. A stunning fact about Hardik Pandya is that his strike rate in 2015 IPL is 180.65 which supports the above-said statement. The flexibility in his batting position has yet again been an advantage for him.

With some fine performances with bat and ball, Pandya has become a mainstay in the team. In 50 matches he played for the team, he has scored 666 runs and claimed 28 wickets. Unsurprisingly, Pandya was retained by the team and will hope to bounce back after having a mediocre season this year.