3 reasons why Mumbai Indians have the strongest squad in IPL 2024
Mumbai Indians have put together an extremely strong squad for IPL 2024. After a few lean seasons post winning their fifth title in 2020, MI needed to ensure that their IPL 2024 auction would go as planned, and that's exactly what happened.
The Mumbai-based franchise entered the auction with just ₹17.75 crore purse remaining. However, they put that amount to splendid use by obtaining the services of Gerald Coetzee and Dilshan Madushanka for just ₹5 crore and ₹4.60 crore, respectively.
Mumbai Indians also beefed up their spin department by purchasing Shreyas Gopal as a backup for Piyush Chawla for ₹20 lakh. They also snapped up Mohammad Nabi at his ₹1.5 crore base price, who could come into play on spin-friendly pitches.
Overall, the Mumbai Indians needed to improve their bowling in the IPL 2024 auction. As that has been done with some aplomb, here are three reasons why the Mumbai Indians have the strongest squad in IPL 2024:
#1 Mumbai Indians have the strongest Indian core
The great Mumbai Indians sides of the last decade have always had a handful of Indian players who have performed consistently for them. With the trade of Hardik Pandya going through, they have improved their Indian core again.
Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Verma and Hardik are all in the scheme of things as far as the potential Indian T20 World Cup squad is concerned. The fact that MI have all of them is extraordinary.
Another key component of Indian sides in all formats is Jasprit Bumrah, who is also a key member of MI. Apart from these India regulars, the franchise also have the likes of Nehal Wadhera, Piyush Chawla and Akash Madhwal, who played well in IPL 2023.
#2 MI's batting unit is the best in IPL 2024
As mentioned earlier, Rohit, Ishan, Suryakumar, Tilak and Hardik will form the core of the Mumbai Indians' batting unit.
Having so many quality Indian batters is almost unfair to the other nine teams. With Tim David coming in at No. 6 and Wadhera following him next, this batting order will be tough to keep quiet.
They also have Dewald Brevis and Vishnu Vinod as capable backups in case of any injuries. As they have also brought in Romario Shepherd, Nab, and Coetzee, they can bat deeply while also having a potent bowling unit in IPL 2024.
#3 MI finally find their pace battery
Another feature of the Mumbai Indians' title-winning sides was their fabulous pace bowling unit, which for a long time included Bumrah and two overseas pacers.
However, after releasing Trent Boult a couple of years ago, MI's pace bowling struggled. Jofra Archer, who was brought in as Boult's replacement, struggled with injuries and so did Bumrah himself in IPL 2023.
The Hardik Pandya-led side brought in Coetzee and Madushanka, two of the best young pacers in world cricket, both of whom performed brilliantly at the 2023 World Cup. They also signed Nuwan Thushara, who has a Malinga-esque bowling action, for ₹4.80 crore.
A pace attack of Bumrah, Hardik, and any two of Coetzee, Madushanka, Thushara and the retained Jason Behrendorff is absolutely lethal. The Wankhede pitch is more conducive to pace bowling, which is why MI have always focused on that area.
Shepherd, who was traded in from the Lucknow Super Giants, could also feature in the lineup as the fourth overseas due to his all-round abilities. Chawla is likely to be the only spinner in the team. However, if MI play in Chennai or Lucknow, Nabi could replace Shepherd as the fourth overseas player.