"It shouldn't be a surprise if MI win the title again" - Sunil Gavaskar ahead of IPL 2022
Former Indian skipper Sunil Gavaskar believes the Mumbai Indians (MI) have a good chance of winning the IPL 2022 title despite losing some key players in the mega auction.
MI had built arguably one of the best teams the league has ever seen over the past few seasons. However, they had to let go of the likes of Quinton de Kock, Trent Boult and Hardik Pandya due to the retention rules.
Nevertheless, the five-time IPL champions have still managed to hold on to some key players like Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Kieron Pollard, Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan. Speaking to Sports Tak, here's what Sunil Gavaskar, who is a proud Mumbaikar himself, had to say about MI's chances in IPL 2022:
"Mumbai know what it takes to win the tournament. This helps them to turn around a lot of games that seem to have gotten away from their grasp. Yes they do start slow in the IPL, but due to the number of teams this time, they will have time to make it up."
Gavaskar added:
"If you have a batting leader like Rohit Sharma and a bowling leader like Jasprit Bumrah, it shouldn't be a surprise if they win the title again."
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Difficult for Gujarat Titans to win the IPL in their first attempt: Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Gavaskar also gave his opinion on new IPL team, the Gujarat Titans' chances of winning the IPL 2022 title. The 72-year-old reckons the squad is inexperienced and a lot would depend on how they start the tournament. He stated:
"Gujarat Titans are a new team with a new captain and that's why I feel they lack experience. I want to see how they perform in the first 5-6 games. If they do well then we can say they can win the title. But the kind of team that they have, I think it will be difficult for them to win the IPL in their first attempt."
Hardik Pandya was a crucial part of Rohit Sharma's MI machine that dominated the IPL and won five titles. With the two now leading their respective franchises, it will be interesting to see which team goes on to have a better season.
Check out the IPL winners list here.