IPL History: Mumbai Indians’ team of the decade
After struggling in their initial years, despite having legends like Sachin Tendulkar, Sanath Jayasuriya and Shaun Pollock, Mumbai Indians regrouped in sensational fashion, and is now the most successful franchise in the Indian Premier League. It is the only side in the history of the T20 tournament to have lifted the trophy on four occasions - 2013, 2015, 2017, and 2019. They also won the now defunct Champions League T20 twice, in 2011 and 2013.
One of the key reasons behind Mumbai Indians’ stupendous success over the last few years has been the fact that they have identified a core group of players, and have backed their talents to the hilt, even as some other franchises have kept changing their squads frequently. MI’s move has paid dividend as they attained a level of consistency only Chennai Super Kings, among other teams, have managed.
As Mumbai Indians prepare to defend their title in IPL 2020, we have compiled MI’s team of the decade (2010-2019).
Openers: Rohit Sharma (captain) and Lendl Simmons
Rohit Sharma as captain and opener of Mumbai Indians is a straightforward choice. With Rohit at the helm, Mumbai have raised their game to a completely different level, which has translated into an IPL record of four titles. His calm and collected captaincy has won him a lot of admirers over the years.
In MI’s title win in 2013, he amassed 538 runs at a strike rate of 131.54. He was the man-of-the-match in the 2015 IPL final, smashing 50 from 26 balls against CSK. He scored over 400 runs in the 2019 edition as well. Having been part of the team since 2011, he has amassed 4,001 at a strike rate of 130.62, with one hundred and 29 fifties..
Rohit will be partnered by West Indies big-hitter Lendl Simmons at the top of the order. India have seen the best of Simmons in the 2016 World T20 semi-final as well as in the recent T20I series. But, it was with MI that he first made a significant impact. He was the leading run-scorer for Mumbai Indians in the 2015 edition with 540 runs in 13 games, including six fifties. Simmons was the top-scorer in the 2015 final, with 68 from 45 balls.
He smashed a memorable 100 not out off 61 balls against Kings XI Punjab in the 2014 edition. Simmons represented Mumbai Indians from 2014-2017, and scored 1,175 runs at a strike rate of 125.80, with one hundred and 12 fifties.