IPL 2018: The core players of Mumbai Indians

Three-time Indian Premier league (IPL) winners, Mumbai Indians will be keen to start their 2018 campaign on a winning note. They have been crowned as champions in 2013, 2015, and 2017, which are alternate years. MI will look to break this alternate jinx by winning in 2018 as well. If they want to do so, they will have to rely heavily on their core set of players and hope that other players play the supporting role.

Let’s have a look at MI’s five players who form the core of their team.

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#1 Rohit Sharma

Captain of the ship, Rohit Sharma has a motivated bunch of players determined to defend the title. The Hitman has a decent record with the bat for MI but needs to be more consistent. He has scored over 4000 runs with a batting average of 32.61 in the league.

Sharma has 32 fifties to his credit in the IPL. This season, he will have to ensure to increase that number as his presence in the middle order will lend a lot of stability to MI’s batting. He might bat up the order to lead from the front, however it is unlikely given the team’s composition. Most probably, he will be MI’s solid number 3 in the MI lineup.

#2 Jasprit Bumrah

Jasprit Bumrah is MI’s most bankable bowler. He takes wicket at the start and blocks the flow of runs at the end, a combination every captain looks for in a strike bowler. He has evolved as a bowler under the guidance of Lasith Malinga. However, now he is on his own. There is no Malinga or Johnson to bowl from the other end.

Bumrah is a thinking cricketer and this shows in his variations. He has developed the out swinger and the slower ball, and is not just the yorker bowler anymore. With an average of 30.48 and an economy rate of 8.1 in the IPL, Jasprit Bumrah’s has been a great asset for MI over the years.

#3 Kieron Pollard

The big man from West Indies is extremely popular among the Paltan. He is athletic in the field, hits big sixes with the bat in hand, and chips in with few overs when needed. Having played 123 matches in the IPL, MI would like Pollard to play with more consistency this season. He has 12 fifties to his name and a strike rate of 146.53.

MI would hope that Pollard’s batting average increases from his current 28.93 even if the existing strike rate doesn’t. Pollard will have to play the finishers role and not just that of a dasher. With the ball, his economy rate is 8.86 and he averages 31.61, something that he would like to improve.

#4 Hardik Pandya

MI will demand a lot more from Hardik Pandya this season. He was used as a pinch hitter in the previous seasons and someone who could bowl fast-medium. The stakes are high now as he is viewed as a genuine all-rounder, not just by MI but also by Team India. He was retained by MI for his performance in IPL’s previous editions as well as in international games. Now, younger Pandya will have to prove his worth by delivering match-winning performances with the bat and with the ball.

The Baroda lad averages 21.37 with the bat in his 37 IPL games. With just one fifty and a strike rate of 142.46, he isn’t quite the star on paper. However, going by his recent form, these statistics should change this season. MI will look to get four overs out of Hardik Pandya in every game and he will have to bring down his economy rate from 9.08 in order to contain the opposition.

#5 Krunal Pandya

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Hardik Pandya’s elder brother, Krunal Pandya came in to bat in crucial situations and played cameos to help MI get out of jail on several occasions in the last season. In 2018, the franchise and the fans hope a lot from the all-rounder. His pinch-hitting skills will be needed considering the other middle-order batsmen will look to bat through the innings.

Krunal’s stump-to-stump line makes it difficult for the opposition team’s batsmen to score runs of him. With an impressive economy rate of 7.15, he has been doing a good job of stifling the opposition but hasn’t been a wicket-taking bowler. In 25 matches, the elder Pandya has taken only 16 wickets, something that he will have to change in 2018.