Five-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Mumbai Indians are going through a forgettable season as they have managed to win just one match out of nine. All three departments of the game have not worked together for the franchise in this edition. This is the reason why the team led by Rohit Sharma is at the bottom of the table with just two points. Rohit Sharma has also not been able to score big as he has scored just 155 runs in nine matches at an average of 17.22. With him going through a lean patch, MI have failed to garner huge opening partnerships.
MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene on Thursday said that Rohit has not been able to convert his starts this season but at the end of the day, it is about the performance of the collective team rather than the individual performance. He also highlighted how the finishers were unable to get the five-time champion down the line.
He said, “Let me answer this in a more fair way. Yes, as you have rightly said RO (Rohit Sharma) has been brilliant with the bat for a long time, consistently getting big scores and the rest have taken his Has batted around. He knows he had started and he was unable to convert them into big guys. It’s not just about one person for a team to work, it’s about executing a game plan The team is about. The way we have structured our lineup this season is something that is lacking and over the top,” Jayawardene said while answering a query from NDTV during a virtual press conference.
“At the same time, we didn’t have those finishers on the backend as well. It’s mostly about getting people to play good cricket and maintain that consistency. That’s something that we lack. You see this season for example. Take Gujarat Titans. That’s what the season is needed for and we don’t have that spark. So, it’s been one of those seasons where we haven’t been able to win those close matches and we haven’t been able to finish the game ruthlessly. You need your main batsmen to be consistent and score those runs. But it’s not an individual, it’s about the collective team’s performance,” he added.
Mumbai Indians registered their first win of the current season in their ninth match against Rajasthan Royals.
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Answering NDTV’s question whether anyone likes Arjun Tendulkar The rest of the matches can be tried, Jayawardene said: “Well, I think everyone’s team has a choice, it’s about match-ups and how we can win matches. Every game is a matter of confidence Well, we managed to achieve our first win and it’s about winning together. It’s about keeping the best guys in the park. If Arjun is one of them then yes, but it all depends on that combination is what we put out.”
The next match of the Rohit-led team will be against Gujarat Titans at the Brabourne Stadium on Friday.
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