The Mumbai Indians have been struggling in IPL 2026 so far. They have been losing games in such a way that they are all but out of the playoff race. After six losses in eight games so far, MI need not only to win all their remaining six games but also to hope for the results from other teams to go their way too. However, former India opener Virender Sehwag refused to blame Hardik Pandya’s captaincy for MI’s poor show.

“MI’s issue is with implementation. They are not being able to execute their plans. When you need wickets, you are not getting the breakthroughs. How will you stop runs? You can stop runs only by dismissing rival batters. MI’s bowling has been a big let-down,” Sehwag said on Cricbuzz. “Earlier, they used to get wickets early on with Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult. But Bumrah was expensive today. Their execution in bowling has not been good.”

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“They should have bowled at least one over from him. He is a wicket-taking bowler. Only Hardik Pandya can answer why he was not given the ball. Whenever he has bowled, he has taken wickets. The captain is trying, but the bowling is very poor,” he shared.

Meanwhile, Mumbai Indians’ batting coach Kieron Pollard has backed pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, urging all to show patience despite his modest returns in the ongoing Indian Premier League 2026 season.

“We are unfortunate, you know, to always be in the public eye. So when we do badly, it’s always highlighted. But when normal people have jobs and they send the wrong email, they have the opportunity to edit the words and all these things. We don’t have that opportunity. So it’s fair enough-when you’re not doing well, you accept certain things. And knowing the individual, I know he’s going to bounce back to greater heights and take wickets,” Pollard said in the post-match press conference.