Win Projections to be updated soon
Legendary West Indies cricketer Brian Lara has turned the spotlight on the bowling attack of Mumbai Indians (MI) after their high-scoring defeat to Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the IPL 2024. While many consider MI favourites due to their strong batting performance, Lara feels their bowling department lacks depth, putting extra pressure on Jasprit Bumrah.
MI’s Bowling Lacks Depth
Jasprit Bumrah, MI’s premier pacer, had an off day against CSK, failing to pick up any wickets and conceding 27 runs in his four overs. Instead of providing support, skipper Hardik Pandya leaked 26 runs in the final over, adding to MI’s woes.
“Not much, I think when we look at Mumbai Indians,” Lara said on Star Sports. “A lot of people have them as favourites, simply because they were batting so well, they scored 230 runs, they chased on 196, made it look very easy, 15 overs, so on that fact I think, we pick them as favourites. But their bowling is poor. Beyond Jasprit Bumrah, there is no one to actually support them in that bowling attack, and the CSK batters took them apart.”
Seven Bowlers, Yet No Support for Bumrah
Despite deploying seven bowlers in the match, MI’s bowling attack failed to impress. While Pandya managed two wickets, he was expensive, conceding 43 runs in his three overs. Pacer Akash Madhwal also went wicketless in his three overs. Spinner Mohammad Nabi, who opened the attack for MI, leaked six runs in his first over. Though Shreyas Gopal picked up a wicket in his first over, MI refrained from using their spinners after the eighth over.
Lara contrasted MI’s bowling performance with CSK’s, highlighting the effectiveness of their bowling attack. “Every single bowler played a part in that game, every single bowler,” Lara said. “We had dot balls at the time, we thought that Mumbai Indians were supposed to accelerate, they didn’t.”
MI Needs to Find Match-Winning Bowlers
Lara believes MI needs to find a solution to their bowling woes. “The spinners, they only bowled 4 overs after around 7 runs an over, but they weren’t trusted with Shivam Dube out there,” he said. “So, MI will have to improve in that area, they’ve got to find a couple of bowlers, match-winning bowlers.”
With the IPL season still underway, MI has time to address their bowling concerns. Whether they can find the right combination to support Bumrah and challenge for the title remains to be seen.
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