"This auction was not according to the status they have created for themselves" - Aakash Chopra rates the Mumbai Indians squad 7/10

The Mumbai Indians are the most successful team in IPL history in terms of the number of titles

Aakash Chopra feels the Mumbai Indians (MI) have not lived up to their lofty standards while picking their squad at the IPL 2022 Auction.

MI went into the mega auction having already retained four players - Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav and Kieron Pollard. They utilized their full quota by picking 21 more players at the auction.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra highlighted that the focus on acquiring Jofra Archer and Ishan Kishan compromised the Mumbai Indians' auction. He said:

"This auction was not according to the status they have created for themselves and that was only down to two factors - one you had to pick Jofra Archer and second, you spent 15.25 crores on Ishan Kishan."

The cricketer-turned-commentator pointed out that the five-time champions were more interested in the future editions of the IPL than the current one. Chopra elaborated:

"I have given this team 7/10, only because this year is not fully on their radar, they are saying if they don't win this year, then also no problem. We don't say this for Mumbai ever. They have still made a competitive side but is it a tournament-winning side which we used to say earlier, you can't say the same right now."

While acknowledging that Jofra Archer and Jasprit Bumrah will form a potent seam-bowling pair, Aakash Chopra added that the former's availability is still a question mark. He reasoned that apart from Archer's injury concerns, the Ashes are also scheduled to be played in England next year.

Aakash Chopra on the issues in the Mumbai Indians squad

The Mumbai Indians will rely a lot on Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan [P/C: iplt20.com]

Reflecting on the squad, Aakash Chopra pinpointed the issues in the batting department. He observed:

"Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav - three are fine but after that, Tilak Varma might have to be played. Tim David with Kieron Pollard, they have bought Tim David with huge money but is he a match-winner at the IPL level, we don't know."

The 44-year-old added that barring Jasprit Bumrah, the Mumbai Indians do not have a great bowling lineup either. Chopra explained:

"Mayank Markande and Murugan Ashwin - they used to have Rahul Chahar. Tymal Mills, Riley Meredith, Daniel Sams are the options they have kept. They have Jaydev Unadkat, Basil Thampi and Arjun Tendulkar - fast bowling doesn't look that great. Of course, Jasprit Bumrah is phenomenal."

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Aakash Chopra pointed out that the Mumbai Indians might not be able to fill the empty spots in the batting order even if they sell the likes of Tymal Mills, Daniel Sams and Riley Meredith next year. He added that the franchise is banking on its scouting abilities.