How the Mumbai Indians may line up in IPL 2018

With 3 IPL titles in their bag, the defending champions Mumbai Indians enjoyed a lot of success during the first 10 editions of the tournament. They retained their captain Rohit Sharma, all-rounder Hardik Pandya, and star bowler Jasprit Bumrah. Surprisingly, they let Harbhajan Singh go and added some fresh faces to the squad.

Some of the other notable names missing in the squad include Nitish Rana, Jos Buttler, Parthiv Patel, Lendl Simmons, and Mitchell McClenaghan. There are some exciting arrivals in the form of Evin Lewis, Pat Cummins, JP Duminy, Ben Cutting, and Mustafizur Rahman.

On that note, let’s take a look at the likely starting XI of Mumbai Indians.

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Openers

Wankhede is too small for Evin Lewis

1. Evin Lewis

Arguably one of the most destructive opening batsmen in world cricket right now. The 26-year-old left-hander from Trinidad & Tobago had a great 2017 and Mumbai Indians bought him for ₹3.8 crores. He caught the attention of the cricketing world when he demolished the Indian bowling line up to score 125 off 62 balls in a T20I game, his second against India. He can clear boundaries at will and is expected to light up the Wankhede.

2. Ishan Kishan

The left-handed wicket-keeper batsman is one of the players to watch out for in the IPL 2018. The 19-year-old played well for Gujarat Lions last campaign as he scored 319 runs for them at an average of 21. Mumbai Indians went all guns blazing for Ishan Kishan in the auction and bought him for a whopping ₹6.2 crores. He is expected to open the batting along with Evin Lewis and wear the wicketkeeping gloves as well.

Middle Order

Can Rohit Sharma take Mumbai to their fourth IPL title?

3. Rohit Sharma

Along with MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma is the most successful captain in IPL history. It did not surprise many when Mumbai Indians retained him for ₹15 crores. With 4207 runs, he is the third highest run-getter in IPL and one of the most successful players in the tournament. His hitting abilities in the shorter format of the game is universally known. He will occupy the all-important No. 3 spot in the Mumbai batting lineup.

4. Suryakumar Yadav

Yadav is back with Mumbai Indians. The 27-year-old was bought by the Mumbai Indians for ₹3.2 crores. He is a versatile batsman and can play anywhere in the lineup. The Mumbai lad will most likely occupy the No. 4 slot in the batting order. He is an aggressive batsman and can score runs quickly. He plays for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy and knows the Wankhede pitch very well.

5. Kieron Pollard

Undoubtedly one of the most important players for the Mumbai Indians. Pollard has been a mainstay in the Mumbai lineup for many years. The Trinidadian is an aggressive batsman and a brilliant finisher. With a strike rate of 147 in IPL, Pollard has single-handedly won a lot of games for Mumbai Indians. His fielding and medium pace bowling add a lot of value to the team.

All-rounders

Hardik Pandya plays an important role with the bat and ball

6. Hardik Pandya

Arguably the best all-rounder in Indian cricket right now, Hardik Pandya played a stellar role for Mumbai Indians in their title-winning 2017 campaign. He chipped in with important runs and took some crucial wickets. With a strike rate of 156, he gets runs quickly lower down the order and is a brilliant fielder. It was no surprise that Mumbai retained him for a huge ₹11 crores.

7. Krunal Pandya

Man of the Match in the finals of the 2017 IPL, Krunal Pandya was an integral part of the Mumbai Indians set up last campaign. The all-rounder has scored 243 runs and picked up 10 wickets in IPL 2017. At 6.82, his economy rate is very impressive for a spinner. His IPL batting strike rate stands at a stunning 158.41. Mumbai Indians bought him for a whopping ₹8.8 crores.

Bowlers

Bumrah will lead the Mumbai Indians' pace attack

8. Pat Cummins

The Australian fast bowler is in stunning form ever since his return from a stress fracture. Mumbai Indians bought him for huge money, ₹5.4 crores to be exact. He picked up 15 wickets in IPL 2017 and is more than useful with the bat. Expect him to play ahead of the Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman. Cummins will replace Mitchell McClenaghan, who played for Mumbai Indians in the last few IPL seasons.

9. Pradeep Sangwan

Pradeep Sangwan is a surprise inclusion in this list, considering his mediocre record in IPL. Other than Jasprit Bumrah, he is the only recognized Indian medium pacer in the Mumbai squad. They bought him for ₹1.5 crores in the auction. He was brilliant in the Syed Mushtaq Ali tournament 2017-18, where he picked up 13 wickets at an economy of 7.30.

10. Rahul Chahar

After some heavy bidding, Mumbai Indians snapped up the rookie leg-spinner for ₹1.9 crores. Rahul Chahar made his IPL debut in 2017 when he played 3 games for the Pune franchise. The 18-year-old from Rajasthan performed well in the domestic T20 tournament and was unlucky to miss out on the World Cup winning Indian U19 squad. Along with Krunal Pandya, he is the only other recognized spinner in the squad.

11. Jasprit Bumrah

World No. 3 and No. 4 in ICC ODI’s and T20I ranking respectively, Jasprit Bumrah has been in stunning form for Mumbai over the last two seasons. He picked up 20 wickets for Mumbai Indians in 2017 and led their pace attack to perfection. Mumbai Indians retained him for ₹7 crores. The 24-year-old will be taking the new ball for Mumbai and holds the key to their success in IPL 2018.