Mumbai Indians are aiming to improve their record of winning 4 IPL titles (2013, 2015, 2017, 2019) and also retain their title for the first time in the franchise’s history.
Only Chennai Super Kings have won back-to-back IPL titles (2010,2011) since the inception of the tournament back in 2008.
They’ve started the ongoing season on a high note, having won four of their first six games and currently occupy the second spot in the points table, behind table-toppers Delhi Capitals.
MI have a good blend of Indian and overseas players’ in their squad. However, here are 4 reasons why MI will not retain the title, which they won last year:
1. Inconsistency shown by top-order
The biggest problem, so far, for MI has been the inconsistency shown by their top three players in the batting line-up –Rohit Sharma, Quinton de Kock, and Suryakumar Yadav. While Rohit Sharma has been highly unpredictable so far, De Kock has played just one match-winning knock in the tournament. Suryakumar Yadav played brilliantly in their last outing but overall he has been very average.
2. Dependency on the middle order
Most of their runs have come from the exploits of their middle-order, mainly — Kieron Pollard and Hardik Pandya. Despite their reputation, one cannot expect them to score runs in every game, but they’ve done it so far. Apart from the duo, Ishan Kishan has also shown a lot of promise, especially against RCB, where he scored a thrilling knock of 99. A lot of games are yet to be played and it’s only a matter of time before the fatigue factor comes into the picture.
3. Extra pressure
MI are the defending champ and historically they’ve not done well while defending their crown. They’ve finished 4th, 5th, and 5th while defending their titles in 2014, 2016, and 2018, respectively. However, they’ve done quite well so far but there’s a lot of cricket, yet to be played.
4. Overconfidence might creep in
As per the current scenario, Mumbai Indians are looking well on their way to qualify for the play-offs. They’ve played some good cricket and won games with a comfortable margin. However, overconfidence might creep in at any point and that could change their winning momentum.