New Delhi: MI has become the first team to face such a situation this season as the 5-time champions Mumbai Indians have been eliminated from the IPL 2024 playoff race.
Despite all the efforts, the team’s performance has not been up to expectations, with consecutive defeats, and the hopes of making it to the playoffs have been dashed.
MI’s fate was sealed after Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Lucknow Super Giants by 10 wickets in the IPL match played in Hyderabad on Wednesday.
Travis Head shared the first wicket with a half-century and achieved the winning target of 166 runs in just 9.4 overs. Earlier, due to Ayush Badoni’s unbeaten half century, Lakhnia Super Giants scored 165 runs for the loss of 4 wickets on a slow pitch.
Mumbai Indians have played 12 matches and lost 8 so far. Even if they win the remaining two matches, they can get a maximum of 12 points.
However, as a result of Hyderabad’s victory, the team has gained 14 points in the table. On May 14, when Delhi Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants will face each other, one of them will reach 14 points. The result suggests that Mumbai Indians will not meet the cut-off to qualify for the playoffs.
The exit of the 5-time champions from the playoff race is a significant event in this IPL as it sets the tone for the rest of the match and the battle for the top 4 spots among other teams.
Mumbai Indians will face a tough match as they prepare to take on Kolkata Knight Riders in their next match at the iconic Eden Gardens. After this important match, they will finish the season against Lucknow Super Giants on May 17th.
Although Yasprit Bumrah has been impressive in his bowling performance, the batting team has struggled to find its rhythm and consistency throughout the tournament.
Apart from this, Hardik Pandya’s leadership ability has also been questioned, which further adds to the challenges that MI will have to overcome in the remaining matches. If the team wants to finish this season on a positive note then the team needs to come back together and fix these issues.
In Hardik’s debut season as the captain for Mumbai Indians, the team fell short of expectations and managed to win only 4 matches. Due to the past success of Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League, the fans are more disappointed this time.
