IPL 2019: 5 players who could be released by Mumbai Indians

Mumbai Indians are one of the most successful teams in the IPL. They became the first team to win three IPL titles when they defeated Rising Pune Supergiant by one run in the 2017 IPL final. Currently led by Rohit Sharma, Mumbai Indians would want to make a come back after a disappointing 2018 campaign.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has asked all the franchises to submit the list of traded and released players by mid-November. Mumbai Indians have already made their first trade as they signed Quinton de Kock from Royal Challengers Bangalore.

They have already released a couple of prominent players, Akila Dananjaya and Mustafizur Rahman. Mumbai Indians have three more weeks to trim their squad and get ready for the 2019 auction, which is expected to happen mid-December in Goa.

On that note, let’s take a look at the 5 players Mumbai Indians could release.

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#5 Pradeep Sangwan

CLT20 2012 Group A - Kolkata Knight Riders v Auckland Aces

Pradeep Sangwan is a forgotten man in the Indian domestic circuit at the moment. Pradeep Sangwan last played a competitive game in April and did not feature for Delhi in the 2018/19 Vijay Hazare Trophy.

Sangwan has played only 39 IPL games so far and picked 35 wickets at an average of 33.57 and an economy rate of almost nine. He was never a consistent performer in the tournament and picked up more than 10 wickets in a season only during IPL 2010.

During the last five IPL seasons, Sangwan has played only 11 games and picked up six wickets. Mumbai Indians paid a lot of money (INR 1.5 crores) during the 2018 auction and might want to replace him with an in-form player for the new season.

#4 Saurabh Tiwary

Saurabh Tiwary did not play a single game last season

Tiwary’s IPL form hasn’t been great in the recent campaigns. The 28-year-old came to prominence in IPL 2010 when he starred for Mumbai Indians with the bat. Tiwary won the Under-23 player of the tournament in 2010 with 419 runs in 16 matches at an average of 29.92 and strike rate of 135.59.

However, it turned out to be his only success IPL campaign. Though he was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2011 for a whopping USD 1.6 million, he failed miserably in the tournament. He never managed to score more than 200 runs in an IPL season since 2011.

Bought by the Mumbai Indians for INR 80 lakhs in the 2018 auction, Tiwary failed to make a single appearance in the tournament. He was also poor for Jharkhand in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy. Mumbai needs to strengthen their middle-order for the 2019 campaign and will have to release underperforming Tiwary.

#3 Ben Cutting

Ben Cutting was below-par for Mumbai Indians in IPL 2018

Ben Cutting was a surprise buy from the Mumbai Indians during the 2018 auction. Primarily a medium pacer, the Australian is regarded a lot for his big hitting abilities in the death overs. However, Cutting never established himself in the Indian Premier League.

Having made his IPL debut in 2014, Ben Cutting played only 18 games so far and scored 220 runs at an average of 24.44 and a strike rate of 177.41. He was expensive with the ball and picked up only nine wickets at an economy rate of nine.

Mumbai Indians paid a huge INR 2.2 crores for the 31-year-old in the 2018 auction, but he failed to justify his massive price tag. Mumbai needs funds to reinforce their squad and releasing Ben Cutting will free them INR 2.2 crores to invest on other players.

#2 JP Duminy

Duminy failed to establish his credentials in IPL 2018

One of the most successful limited-overs batsmen for South Africa, Jean-Paul Duminy has scored 5000 runs in One Day Internationals and 1683 runs in T20Is for the Proteas. Duminy has played in eight of the previous 11 Indian Premier League seasons.

In 83 IPL games, the 34-year-old has scored more than 2000 runs in IPL at an average of 39.78 and a strike rate of 124.02. He has also picked up 23 wickets with his useful off-spinners. 2014 and 2015 were his best seasons in IPL when he scored more than 400 runs in each of those campaigns.

Mumbai Indians bought him for INR 1 crore in the 2018 auction. Duminy played six games last season and scored only 36 runs at a poor strike rate of 90. Mumbai needs a power player in the middle-order and at 34, Duminy is not the right option for them.

#1 Kieron Pollard

Kieron Pollard

Pollard has been with the Mumbai Indians for the past nine IPL seasons. A fan favourite at the Wankhede, the 31-year-old has done extremely well for the Mumbai Indians. Pollard has played 132 games for Mumbai and scored 2476 at an average of 28.13 and strike rate of 145.73.

Pollard has played a key role in Mumbai Indians’ success and led them to three Indian Premier League titles. Though he does not bowl a lot these days, he is a live wire on the field and has been an inspiration for his side. However, Pollard was far from his best last season and was even dropped for a few games.

He played nine games in 2018 and scored only 133 runs at an average of 19 and a strike rate of 133. Pollard’s failure has exposed Mumbai Indians’ middle-order last campaign and they lost quite a few games because of that. INR 5.40 crores is a lot of money for a player who is far too inconsistent these days.