Head Coach Mahela Jayawardene has strongly pushed back against the criticism surrounding the Mumbai Indians’ recent title search in the Indian Premier League, arguing that perspective is key in a competition where several teams are still chasing their first title.
Mumbai, joint record-holders with Chennai Super Kings for most IPL trophies (five), have not lifted the title since 2020. Their form over the last five seasons has been inconsistent, including two last-place finishes. Yet, Jayawardene insists that focusing solely on that dry spell ignores the broader reality of the league.
“10 teams makes it even harder competition,” he said, underlining how expansion has intensified the challenge. “But I think in the last 5 years, we were in the playoffs
2 or 3 times… So that means we had our opportunities in just that last bit.”
His central argument is simple: while Mumbai’s standards are high, they are far from alone in falling short. Several franchises in the IPL’s history are yet to win a single title — that includes two from the original eight in Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings, while a third, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, won the first only last year — making Mumbai’s situation far less alarming than it is often portrayed.
“Some teams haven’t won it forever either. We are not rubbing it in. But with all due respect, we just thought that we would trust our process. And work on ourselves on how we need to go about it,” he added.
Rather than overhauling their approach, Jayawardene stressed continuity. “We just need to continue to trust that process and keep playing good cricket. And we will get there,” he said, reiterating the franchise’s long-standing philosophy. “I don’t see why we need to do something different.”
Notorious as slow starters, MI began IPL 2026 with an impressive win over the Kolkata Knight Riders. They take on Delhi Capitals on Friday (April 3).
