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Cricket PlayersMI kick off their IPL 2026 today but coach Mahela Jayawardene’s comments are a matter of concern for franchise and fans
Maybe, Mahela Jayawardene can learn from India head coach Gautam Gambhir who is relentless in pursuit of trophies.
Five-time champions Mumbai Indians (MI) kick off their Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign later tonight against Kolkata Knight Riders at home, at the Wankhede Stadium. Mumbai Indians haven't won any IPL title since 2020 — that year they had beaten Delhi Capitals in the final — and for a team that has been so successful in the history of the league, this gap is way too big.
In 2024, they had hit rock bottom as they finished bottom of the 10-team table. Last year, they did much better to qualify for the play-offs, but as said before, for a team that has set such high standards, anything other than the trophy is not going to satiate their passionate fans.
However, their head coach Mahela Jayawardene propagated a totally different idea on the matter, which is unlikely to be palatable to an MI fan. "To be honest, every year we want to win, so it's not about the gap. That's how I see things. How we see is that we will play our best cricket to win the title. So for us, the gap is not the thing," he said on the eve of the match.
"It's about, it's bigger than - yes, the IPL trophy is massive - but for us, it's even bigger how we go about doing things. As long as we have the culture, the winning culture and doing that, I know that we will have enough trophies to celebrate that," he added.
That sounds great. But not winning trophies over a long period is not seen in a good light. Virat Kohli wasn't encouraged to continue as captain on that account, fans would remember. Jayawardene should have admitted that they had not done well in the last few years and now was the time to change that. Instead, he came with a lame philosophy.
The memories are still fresh, how new captain Hardik Pandya was treated by MI fans from the stands in 2024. How things had got worse for him during the course of that season. If not for his T20 World Cup-winning performance later in the year, who knows if he would still be captain today?
Gautam Gambhir has a totally different take!
Jayawardene's remarks are alarming. They suggest he is taking it easy, not too bothered about winning the trophy. Sorry to say but if that's how the think tank thinks, it might prove to be another barren year for the Mumbai franchise. The 48-year-old Sri Lankan, an elegant batter in his day, can take a lot of cues from India head coach Gautam Gambhir who has said it on record several times that when his team goes into a contest, they go in to win, to go all the way. That’s what matters to him most.
And look at his success rate. Two ICC trophies in less than a year for Team India: the Champions Trophy last year and the T20 World Cup earlier this month.
Four of the franchise's stalwarts, Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah and Tilak Varma were part of India's recent T20 World Cup triumph. So, Mumbai Indians have players with a winning mentality. But if the coach does not sound too keen, it will be interesting to see if the four above and their winning mentality are not affected.
Mumbai Indian's campaign this season will prove one thing for sure. Like, how important the role of a coach is. If, despite having some of the finest T20 players of all time, they don't win or don’t look intense about their campaign at least, no prizes for guessing as to who should be blamed. It may be noted that Pandya, Surya and Bumrah were also part of the 2024 T20 World Cup-winning team, but then all the franchise showed was a big improvement in IPL 2025. Not a trophy!
