Perhaps one of the most consistent teams in the Indian Premier League since 2010, the Mumbai Indians will kickstart their IPL 9 season with abundant confidence under their wings with the tag of ‘defending champions’. The Mumbai Indians have always been a team to watch out for and this year also sees a very powerful squad. The squad boasts of quality all-rounders and have acres of experience in the squad.
The side is mentored by international cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar, and is one of the reasons why Mumbai Indians is the team that they are now. The presence of Sachin in the main 11 was enough for crowds and fans to go gaga. Now, even after his retirement he continues to guide the team from his home city and has created a huge fan following in and around the world. Apart from this, Rohit Sharma’s captaincy has been phenomenal leading to the huge success of the team.
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Not only the squad, the managerial unit also has some popular yesteryear cricketing names such as Jonty Rhodes, Shane Bond and Ricky Ponting. With this and a well-settled squad, the Mumbai Indians will be looking to grab a record third title in their IPL journey
How did the auctions go for them?
Having retained their core squad before the auctions, the Mumbai Indians were quite animated during their limited purchases. The notable purchases were those of reliable hard-hitting English wicketkeeper Jos Buttler and New-Zealand seamer Tim Southee.
Amongst the local talent, all-rounder Hardik Pandya’s sibling Krunal Pandya was bought for 2 crores, while fast-bowler Nathu Singh was the talk of the town after he was bought for a whopping 3.2 crores, based on his splendid performance in the domestic leagues.
Strengths:
The batting line-up is of great quality, while the squad lists a great set of all-rounders such as Kieron Pollard, Corey Anderson, Pandya etc. The bowling line-up boasts of star names such as Harbhajan Singh, Lasith Malinga and Jasprit Bumrah. The death bowling will also be taken care of by Malinga and Bumrah.
The addition of Nathu Singh can also provide the perfect foil for the two of them. If Malinga is deemed unfit, then Mitchell McClenaghan or Tim Southee can take up the senior pacer’s role with ease. The fielding department is ably led by the captain himself and is coached by the legend in Jonty Rhodes.
Weaknesses:
One weakness lies with the fact that the Mumbai Indians have a reputation for starting very slow in the tournament, losing their initial matches and clawing back after the middle stages of the tournament. This time around they will be looking to start strong and create a mark in the tournament early on. The other problem would be the selection criteria. With the plethora of talented foreigners in their roster, it will be a tough task for forming the right eleven.
Franchise details:
Owner: Reliance Industries
Captain: Rohit Sharma
Home: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
History: 2008 - 5th position, 2009 - 7th place, 2010 - runners-up, 2011 - 3rd place, 2012 - 3rd place, 2013 - WINNERS, 2014 - 4th place, 2015 - WINNERS
Mumbai Indians squad for IPL 9:
Foreigners: Lendl Simmons, Kieron Pollard, Corey Anderson, Jos Buttler, Lasith Malinga, Mitchell McClenaghan, Tim Southee, Marchant de Lange.
Indians: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Hardik Pandya, Harbhajan Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Ambati Rayudu, Parthiv Patel, Siddesh Lad, Nitish Rana, Unmukt Chand, Shreyas Gopal, Krunal Pandya, Deepak Punia, Jitesh Sharma, Ranganath Vinay Kumar, Jagdeesha Suchith, Akshay Wakhare, Nathu Singh, Kishore Kamath.
Mumbai Indians schedule for IPL 9:
| Date | Opposition | Venue | Time |
| 9th April 2016 | Rising Pune Supergiants | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | 20:00 |
| 13th April 2016 | Kolkata Knight Riders | Eden Gardens, Kolkata | 20:00 |
| 16th April 2016 | Gujarat Lions | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | 20:00 |
| 18th April 2016 | Sunrisers Hyderabad | Rajiv Gandhi Intl. Cricket Stadium, Hyderabad | 20:00 |
| 20th April 2016 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | 20:00 |
| 23rd April 2016 | Delhi Daredevils | Ferozeshah Kotla, Delhi | 16:00 |
| 25th April 2016 | Kings XI Punjab | PCA Stadium, Mohali | 20:00 |
| 28th April 2016 | Kolkata Knight Riders | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | 20:00 |
| 1st May 2016 | Rising Pune Supergiants | Maharashtra Cricket Association's International Stadium, Pune | 20:00 |
| 8th May 2016 | Sunrisers Hyderabad | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | 16:00 |
| 11th May 2016 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore | 20:00 |
| 13th May 2016 | Kings XI Punjab | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | 20:00 |
| 15th May 2016 | Delhi Daredevils | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | 20:00 |
| 21st May 2016 | Gujarat Lions | ----Unavailable--- | --- |
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