“It’s been a season of what-ifs,” said Kieron Pollard, Mumbai Indians’ batting coach, after the franchise’s final match ended in another let-down—an IPL 2026 loss to Rajasthan Royals that left MI finishing ninth.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Pollard reflected on the many moments that slipped away. “If this had happened, if we had done that, if we had played this one, if we had batted—there’s a bit of that,” he said. “Overall, it has been disappointing for all of us. There’s no hiding from it.”
He added that Mumbai were unable to build momentum and string results together. “We weren’t good the entire tournament,” Pollard said. “We weren’t able to sort of string together wins and use the momentum when we got it.”
Not the moment for a post-mortem
Pollard stressed that the time for detailed analysis would come later, once the emotions settle. “But it’s not yet time to discuss specifics and point to shortcomings,” he said.
“Right now is not the time and place to talk about that [post mortem],” Pollard explained. “These things become emotional decisions—thinking through every aspect of what’s needed. Everyone needs time and space to go away, recollect, and make a fair assessment of where it went wrong for us. That’s where better decision-making will come from.”
He cautioned against jumping to conclusions immediately. “If you sit here right now and say you need to do this, you need to do that, I think that will be irresponsible from a management perspective,” Pollard added.
When the review does take place, Pollard expects it to be methodical. “It’s going to be thorough,” he said, as players and staff look inward and evaluate the season’s turning points.
Deep thinking after another title gap
Pollard also pointed to the pressure of history, noting that MI have not won the championship since 2020. “Guys are going to sit back and actually think about what’s needed,” he said. “It has been a while that we have won the championship, and that’s something that we have accepted as a team.”
He described the campaign as another disappointing chapter that must be examined with care. “Another disappointing campaign adding to what would have transpired before,” Pollard said. “So deep thinking is going to go into it.”
Leadership questions: Hardik and Bumrah
Two recurring themes during the season centered on Hardik Pandya’s captaincy and Jasprit Bumrah’s dip in wicket-taking impact.
On captaincy and squad planning, Pollard addressed questions around retentions and releases ahead of the year. “If we go back 12 months, we finish third [fourth, in IPL 2025],” he said. “That in itself justifies some of the changes that you would have made before.”
With MI now ninth, Pollard insisted the focus should not be on second-guessing for the sake of it. “Now, finishing ninth, you’re not wanting to question it,” he said. “I think the inconsistencies are what we need to stay away from—and understand strategically where we need to get better.”
He defended the intention behind the leadership plan while refusing to assign blame. “From a leadership perspective, Hardik, yes, it has not gone maybe as well as he would have wanted as an individual,” Pollard said. “But one thing we know is that we tried everything to give him the best opportunity to lead the franchise to do well.”
“No one is going to sit here and point fingers,” Pollard added. “When you lose, you have to look at it from a collective perspective. You win some, you lose some. He was trying, we all were trying, and it just didn’t work out for us.”
Bumrah’s season, meanwhile, was his leanest in wicket count since 2015, when he played just four matches and took three wickets. In IPL 2026, his economy rate was strong at 8.37, but he finished with only four wickets.
Pollard explained the context behind that numbers-driven drop. “To be honest, he came in with a bit of a niggle after the [T20] World Cup,” he said. “We tried to manage it. He wasn’t his best self in terms of fitness perspective and all of that—but he was able to come and try to deliver.”
Pollard then addressed another selection-related question tied to whether Bumrah should have played. “You’re going to get two points if you played. What’s that going to do for us,” he said. “Sometimes you need to understand the player and understand what’s necessary at this point in time.”
He suggested that, from a selection standpoint, the team believed it wasn’t the right moment to risk Bumrah. “From a selection perspective, we didn’t think that today would have been right for him to play,” Pollard said. “We had other guys on the bench. We have depth in our bowling. We have young guys. Trying something different—I don’t see anything wrong with that.”
Pollard urged against over-reading a single decision, especially with the season already concluded. “Let’s not look too much into that,” he said. “This is the last game of the season. It’s not that we could have qualified [for the playoffs]. And he’s a prized possession for Indian cricket. So sometimes you have to take the smarter option.”
Quick facts
- Mumbai Indians finished ninth in IPL 2026 after losing their last match to Rajasthan Royals.
- Kieron Pollard said the campaign felt like “what-ifs,” with MI unable to string together wins and momentum.
- Pollard insisted a detailed post-mortem will be “thorough,” but not immediately—calling early directives “irresponsible” from a management perspective.
- MI have not won the IPL title since 2020, and Pollard described the need for “deep thinking” after the latest disappointment.
- Pollard addressed leadership questions around Hardik Pandya, arguing that the response to results must be collective rather than finger-pointing.
- Jasprit Bumrah’s IPL 2026 wicket return was four wickets, his lowest since 2015 (when he took three wickets in four matches); his economy rate was 8.37.
- Pollard said Bumrah arrived after the T20 World Cup with a niggle and that MI tried to manage his fitness.
- Pollard said the decision to play—or not play—Bumrah was influenced by selection judgement, squad depth, and considering his long-term value to Indian cricket.
