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Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra believes Mumbai Indians (MI) can go all the way and clinch their sixth IPL title in the 2024 edition of the league because of the incredibly strong Indian core in the side.
Mumbai already had the likes of Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma, and Suryakumar Yadav as their Indian core last year. Chopra feels star speedster Jasprit Bumrah's comeback, coupled with the massive trade-in of newly appointed skipper Hardik Pandya, gives them incredible steel.
In a video on his YouTube channel, here's what Aakash Chopra had to say about MI's Indian core (0:30):
"Most teams that go on to win the IPL have a solid Indian core. We have seen that teams that are overdependent on their foreign players eventually end up faltering.
"When you look at the Mumbai players, there's a wealth of experience in their Indian core with seven players having India caps. Normally the Indian core is a weakness with teams but not with MI and that's why I feel they can win IPL 2024."
Chopra also expects wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan to be fired up and hungry to prove a point during the IPL 2024 season with his performances. The southpaw was left out of the latest round of BCCI central contracts. Many believe that was because Ishan didn't report to his state team Jharkhand during the Ranji Trophy.
Aakash Chopra on MI's team combination
Suryakumar Yadav is currently recovering from a sports hernia and while Bumrah was incredible during the Test series against England, he hasn't played in the IPL since 2022.
However, Aakash Chopra believes the Indian core gives Mumbai an advantage of packing their bowling attack with overseas pacers alongside Bumrah. On this, he stated (2:47):
"Suryakumar Yadav hasn't played cricket for a while so even he will be hungry. Jasprit Bumrah is back in the IPL after missing last season and they just have an incredible combination. They can play multiple overseas pacers if they want. Their players have the hunger."
Mumbai Indians will begin their IPL 2024 campaign against the Gujarat Titans (GT) in Ahmedabad on March 24. Hardik will be returning to his former home ground for the past two seasons but this time as the opposition skipper.
