A belligerent Mumbai Indians have forced their way into Qualifier 2 of the Indian Premier League in a bid to reach the final this season. Down and out after losing the first four of their five matches, Mumbai Indians in their typical fashion hurled themselves back into contention, owing to some superb team performances in the second half of the tournament.
This IPL season has been no different. The opening five matches yielded just two points, but the ten games since have seen eight Mumbai Indians wins, with their latest victory taking them closer to a slice of history . And while Mumbai Indians doing Mumbai Indians things may seem like a recurring narrative, it is certainly worth gushing about all over again, just because, well, they seem to do it every darn time.
Playing in the Eliminator, Mumbai Indians were put under the pump by Gujarat Titans’ Sai Sudharsan, but they weathered that storm, making sure that they brought themselves closer to the promised land, one that this team desperately needed.It has been a massive turnaround in the mood at the MI camp. In 2024, when Hardik Pandya freshly took over the side, things looked broken. Mark Boucher, the former coach of the side, looked out of depth, and Mumbai Indians paid the price of not showing a united front.
Finishing 10th in IPL 2024 probably rubbed the players and the management the wrong way, and they proceeded to make some crucial changes to their line-up. They had a superb IPL auction, one where they brought in key reinforcements to the side, to bolster an already strong core.
But even then, things went a little pear-shaped after the team failed to put in a good start to the tournament. It took four losses for MI to show a united front. The senior members stood up, the youngsters clicked and more importantly, the return of Jasprit Bumrah galvanised the side.
And then Mumbai went on a rampaging run, which, if they win the IPL 2025, will turn out to be the story of the tournament with another exciting journey titled ‘ODD Year and Mumbai Indians A puzzle yet to be solved’ . Impressed by the journey of 5 times Champions former Indian cricketer Shikhar Dhawan has gone full throttle in supporting Mumbai Indians to go all the way and win their 6th title in 2025.
IPL has been very exciting- Shikhar Dhawan
Shikhar Dhawan has revealed that he’s backing the Mumbai Indians (MI) to win IPL 2025, saying the five-time champions have been ‘playing very well’ and are a well-balanced team who have momentum on their side. The former India opener picked Hardik Pandya’s side over his former club, Punjab Kings (PBKS), and the high-flying Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), who are the only team to have solidified their place in the final so far.
The five-time champions will play Qualifier 2 against Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Ahmedabad on Sunday, June 1.
“This time, the IPL has been very exciting. For the finals, my support will be with Mumbai Indians. The Mumbai Indians team is playing really well — they are very balanced. The way they’ve gained momentum is outstanding, and they are a very strong and well-balanced team. So, I’m with Mumbai Indians,” Dhawan said on Saturday (via India Today).
Shikhar Dhawan was PBKS’ captain last year when they finished ninth in the points table, just above MI. This year, under Shreyas Iyer and Ricky Ponting, the Punjab-based franchise has been one of the best, qualifying at the top of the table. But they lost to RCB in the first Qualifier and will play against MI in the second Qualifier after the latter beat Shubman Gill’s Gujarat Titans by 20 runs in the Eliminator on Friday.
But when the playoffs dawn, or when the business end of the tournament approaches, Mumbai Indians, irrespective of how poor they have been prior to it, or how listless they have seemed before that phase, somehow rise from the ashes like a phoenix. Often smiling and smirking at those who questioned them, and metaphorically highlighting that this is their habitat, and where they feel most comfortable.
Which…is probably not a good sign for the rest of the pack. Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru, from the start of the league stage to its finish, have put together more coherent campaigns than MI. But they have made a combined total of five IPL finals in eighteen years. Mumbai Indians have that many titles. And they have played in one more final.
That is the confidence Mumbai Indians will carry into Sunday. They may have been thumped by the Kings a few days ago, but back then, the Kings had no jeopardy to worry about. No real feeling of their world falling apart if things went wrong.
No real doubt over if they can put behind previously nightmarish experiences. Now, there will be jeopardy. Oh, there will be lots of it. And there will be a Mumbai Indians-named foe in front of them, with that notorious habit of starting off sluggishly and then bossing games where the differential between risk and reward is at its crest.
This, of course, does not mean that Mumbai Indians will ransack the remainder of the tournament and canter to another triumph. But history does suggest that Mumbai Indians prance and prowl in this neck of the woods better than most teams to have participated in this competition. Mumbai Indian’s performance in the Eliminator would have sent shivers down the spine of the remaining two sides in the competition, and rightly so, because when Mumbai Indians mean business, it is fairly difficult to stop them.
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