Year-Ender: Recalling Mumbai Indians' disappointing IPL 2024 campaign
The 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) was a record-breaking affair as several players and teams enjoyed memorable campaigns. However, Mumbai Indians (MI) had a torrid tournament. They hence finished last on the points table. The team's performance was marred by a lack of consistency in all departments, with new captain Hardik Pandya's underwhelming performance being a major factor. Here we revisit MI's forgettable IPL 2024 season.
MI's performance history in recent IPL seasons
MI claimed just four wins from 14 league matches. They suffered 10 defeats. MI's NRR was -0.318. Notably, this isn't the first time MI has suffered such a setback. They had also lost 10 matches in the 2022 season. This year was the third time in four IPL seasons that MI missed out on a playoff berth. Notably, the five-time champions clinched successive titles in 2019 and 2020.
MI's batting lineup struggles in IPL 2024
Rohit Sharma was sensational in the first half of the tournament as he finished as MI's top run-getter with 417 runs at 32.07 (SR: 150). He even scored a hundred. However, his form plummeted in the second half, as he crossed the 20-run mark only once in his last seven outings. Youngster Tilak Varma impressed with his middle-order performance, scoring 416 runs at an average of 41.60 and nearly 150 strike rate.
Inconsistent performances from key MI players
Suryakumar Yadav, who missed the first few games, did score 345 runs at a strike rate of 167.47, including a century. Ishan Kishan's form was hit or miss with him scoring 320 runs at an average of just over 22. Tim David added 241 runs at a strike rate of nearly 159 while Nehal Wadhera and Naman Dhir managed only 109 and 140 runs respectively.
Hardik Pandya's underwhelming performance as captain
Hardik, who took over MI captaincy this season, had a poor run with the bat. He could only score 216 runs at an average of 18 and a strike rate of just over 143. His highest score was a meager 46. Despite his batting woes, Pandya did show some promise as a bowler in the latter half of the tournament, taking 11 wickets at an economy rate of nearly 11.
Bumrah stood out for MI
Jasprit Bumrah stood out for MI, taking 20 wickets—the second-most by any bowler in the IPL 2024 league stage. He also had an impressive economy of 6.48. Gerald Coetzee and Piyush Chawla both picked 13 wickets apiece but with high economy rates of nearly nine runs an over. Nuwan Thushara picked eight wickets but with an economy rate of nearly 10 runs an over.
