Five-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Mumbai Indians (MI) are currently struggling in the 19th edition of the tournament. The Mumbai-based franchise was known for making a strong comeback after a slow start, but in IPL 2026, that hasn’t happened. he poor start has continued into the middle of the tournament, and now their chances of reaching the playoffs are almost gone.

With six losses in eight matches, MI now have to win all their remaining six games and also depend on other results going in their favour. Their current skipper, Hardik Pandya, is facing a lot of criticism for the team's performance in the tournament; however, former India cricketer Virender Sehwag does not think captain Hardik Pandya is the main reason behind the team’s struggles.

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"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."

Sehwag also questioned one of MI’s decisions during the game, pointing out that Shardul Thakur was brought in as an impact player but wasn’t used at all. "Samajh nahi aaya (did not understand at all)," Murali Kartik, who was part of the discussion, said.

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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."

At the same time, Mumbai Indians’ batting coach Kieron Pollard has supported Jasprit Bumrah, asking people to be patient despite his quiet performances this season.

These comments came after MI lost heavily to Sunrisers Hyderabad by six wickets, even after putting up a big total of 243 runs. Bumrah, who is one of their main bowlers, has taken only two wickets in eight matches so far, although he still has the best economy rate among MI bowlers.