The five-time IPL champions, Mumbai Indians had built an unbelievable squad over the course of these years and it’s a no brainer that if any franchise had to suffer the most due to the mega auctioning of players, then it was none other than Mumbai.
Retentions: As it was expected of them, Mumbai Indians retained a decent chunk of their core by making full use of the quota of four retentions. They retained their skipper in Rohit Sharma (16 crore), ace bowler in Jasprit Bumrah (12 crore), dependable batsman in Suryakumar Yadav (8 crore), talisman in Kieron Pollard (6 crore) who can successfully finish off games from even the most dreaded scenarios.
Auction: Mumbai Indians had a very quiet day on the first day of the auction. They broke the bank for the southpaw wicketkeeper in Ishan Kishan (15.25 crore) as he ended up becoming the costliest buy in the mega auction. Some other purchases made by them on this day were - young prodigy Dewald Brevis (3 crore), speedster Basil Thampi (30 lakh), leggie Murugan Ashwin (1.6 crore).
Mumbai had a quiet day before lunch on day 2 as well which put their fanbase in a state of worry as they just bought domestic veteran Jaydev Unadkat (1.3 crore) and young leggie Mayank Markande (65 lakh) before the lunch. A lot of doubts were being raised on Mumbai’s auction strategy at this moment and even the staunchest of fans had doubts in their minds but as it is often the case with Mumbai, they had a tremendous comeback towards the end of the auction. They peaked at the right time and snapped up two young talents in N Tilak Varma (1.7 crore) and Sanjay Yadav (50 lakh). They might seem to be relatively unknown talents but they might prove out to be X-factors of this squad as Mumbai have had a tendency to throw a rookie to surprise their opponents. Mumbai was in particular very bullyish about N Tilak Varma and it seemed like they would even have paid twice the amount than what they actually did for him had any other franchise continued with the bidding. The real deal for Mumbai in this auction came when Jofra Archer’s name was pulled from the pile. Mumbai had no hesitation in going all out for him and though the move may not make sense to many as Archer is unlikely to play any part in IPL 2022 but considering what he brings to the table, Archer at a sum of 8 crore may prove to be the best deal made in this mega auction. We have seen in the past that the best deals in the auction are made towards the end and post Jofra’s purchase, Mumbai didn’t look back and peaked exactly at the right time at snapped up some interesting and spicy buys in all-rounder Daniel Sams (2.6 crore), slower ball specialist Tymal Mills (1.5 crore), big hitter Tim David (8.25 crore), lightning-fast Riley Meredith (1 crore). They boosted their domestic contingent by picking up Arshad Khan (20 lakh), Anmolpreet Singh (20 lakh), Ramandeep Singh (20 lakh), Rahul Buddhi (20 lakh), Hrithik Shokeen (20 lakh), Arjun Tendulkar (30 lakh), Aryan Juyal (20 lakh). Though, most of them are relatively unknown names but one can never be assured of who might prove out to be the X-factor in this side with their scouting team having a reputation of making stars by bringing up never seen talents from nowhere. They ended their auction by purchasing a Caribbean spin bowling all-rounder in Fabian Allen (75 lakh).
Playing XI
Rohit Sharma ©
Ishan Kishan (WK)
N Tilak Varma
Suryakumar Yadav
Sanjay Yadav
Kieron Pollard (VC)
Tim David
Daniel Sams
Murugan Ashwin
Jasprit Bumrah
Tymal Mills
Composition: It seems almost certain that Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav will make up the top 4. Dewald Brevis may get a look in if Tilak Varma fails to live up to expectations either in the nets or during games. In case that happens, Jaydev Unadkat or Basil Thampi will walk in the position designated for Daniel Sams to make way for Brevis in place of Varma. The positions number 5 to 8 shall be flexible and will be decided based on the situation of the game. The power hitting allrounder based positions will be in the able hands of Kieron Pollard and Tim David. Tim David’s responsibility will be to emulate the role of Hardik Pandya in the side. The responsibility of emulating Krunal Pandya’s role will be on Sanjay Yadav’s shoulders. In case of Sanjay Yadav not living up to the expectations, Mumbai may look to walk in with a specialist batsman in Anmolpreet Singh who has been with them for several years and made his IPL debut last year. Mohd Arshad Khan and Ramandeep Singh too may get a look in for this spot. The next spot will be occupied by Jofra Archer but since he will not be present for quite a while, there shall be a straight matchup for that spot between Riley Meredith and Daniel Sams based on the performance and what the surface offers. If the surface has anything upfront for the quicks, then Riley Meredith will get a look in as he can clock 150-155 kmph speed bracket for six out of six deliveries in an over. On flat or decks with no assistance for the quicks upfront, Daniel Sams should be able to walk in the XI. On a turning track, Fabian Allen too may get a look in for this spot. The spin department would be in the exciting hands of Murugan Ashwin while the pace attack would be led by Jasprit Bumrah with assistance from Tymal Mills.
Strengths: Despite a young Tilak Varma’s presence, their top 4 looks highly impressive. They have a bunch of capable multi-dimensional players in Kieron Pollard, Tim David, Daniel Sams, Fabian Allen.
The pair of Pollard and David will be like a dream combination when it comes to power hitting. The addition of Sams to it makes the trio look all the more mouth-watering.
Murugan Ashwin is an experienced spinner who is not afraid of tossing the ball up in order to grab wickets.
No words can be said about Jasprit Bumrah and the amount of quality he brings in the side’s fast bowling department. Tymal Mills has off-late been a big success with his well disguised slower ones and it would be really difficult for the batsmen to pick him up. The addition of Jofra Archer (irrespective of when it happens) will surely make Mumbai Indians the best bowling side on paper.
They have as many as 8 bowling options in the side as barring Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav others have a regular tendency of rolling their arm over.
Weaknesses: The spin department looks weak on paper for Mumbai Indians which has been the Achilles’ heel for them ever since Harbhajan Singh left the side. With Murugan Ashwin, Mayank Markande, Hrithik Shokeen, Tilak Varma, Sanjay Yadav and Fabian Allen in the side, they don't have either experience or quality to count for much in this aspect on paper. They have some decent leg-spin options but when it comes to specialist off-spin options, they just have a rookie spinner in Hrithik Shokeen and half a bowler in Tilak Varma and Tim David to show and that’s where they may miss the services of a specialist like Jayant Yadav who was with them for the past 3 years.
The batting order from number 5 to 8 comprising Sanjay, Pollard, David, Sams may seem to be really tempting on paper but is not very reliable and may prove out to be a complete hit or miss on occasions. This is where Suryakumar Yadav's role at the number 4 spot becomes even more crucial.
The two spots in the batting order held by Tilak Varma/Dewald Brevis and Sanjay Yadav/Anmolpreet Singh may prove out to be the two positions in the batting order which can be further exploited by the opposition sides as these players are young and untested commodities at this level.
Apart from Jasprit Bumrah and even Tymal Mills to some extent, the other bowlers can be targeted and taken for runs.
The absence of a decent backup wicketkeeper may also be a worry for them in case Ishan Kishan gets injured during the tournament. The only backup wicketkeeper they have got up their ranks is Aryan Juyal who will have to straightaway be roped into the XI in case a mishappening occurs with Kishan.
