Mumbai Indians endured a forgettable IPL 2026 campaign, finishing ninth on the points table with just four wins and eight points to their name. Their final defeat came against the Rajasthan Royals on Saturday evening, as they fell short in the chase of 206, losing by 30 runs at the Wankhede Stadium.
MI’s torrid run had raised questions about Hardik Pandya’s captaincy as the team lost 10 out of 14 matches. Batting coach Kieron Pollard addressed the media on Sunday at Wankhede Stadium, admitting that Pandya’s leadership didn’t go as well as expected.
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“From a leadership perspective on Hardik, yes, it has not gone as well as he would have wanted as an individual,” Pollard told reporters after
the match.
“It might not have gone how we would have wanted as a management staff. But one thing you (should) know that we have tried everything to give him the best opportunity to lead the franchise, to do well,” he added.
Pollard called it a collective failure of the Mumbai Indians group.
“No one is going to sit here and put blame on point fingers. When you lose, especially, you have to look at it from a collective perspective. You win some, you lose some. But, at the end of the day, I wouldn’t question certain things,” Pollard said.
“He (Pandya) was trying; we all were trying, and it just didn’t work out for us. You sit, you talk, (and) see what is (for the) best. Never know what is going to happen. For us, let us just lick our wounds in (this) time and hopefully come back stronger in the 12 months,” he added.
Will Panday Be Removed As MI Captain?
The batting coach said the franchise is set for some introspection after a disappointing ninth-place finish this season, a sharp slide from their third-place showing in the 2025 edition, but stressed that any overhaul will be approached with caution rather than haste.
Pollard said the Mumbai Indians will not be rushing into making any changes but admitted that a re-look is required on certain aspects after the team finished ninth, compared to third in the 2025 edition.
“Right now, it’s not the time and place to talk about that,” Pollard said.
“All these things would be sort of emotional decisions and thinking of every aspect of what is needed; everyone needs that time and space to go sit down, recollect, have a fair assessment as to where everything actually went wrong for us.”
“That is where better decision-making is going to come about. If you sit here right now and say you need to do this, you need to do that, that would be irresponsible from a management perspective,” he added.
