IPL is likely to be held in UAE now from September to November this year. It’s great news for all cricket fans. So, we’ll get to see our favourite cricketers once again in yellow, blue, red, and purple. Mumbai Indians are the defending champions. They defeated Chennai Super Kings in 2019 IPL final to win their fourth title.
So, here’s the best XI from the four Mumbai Indians winning XI in the history of the IPL
2015 IPL final Mumbai Indians XI
Mumbai Indians were facing a strong team in Chennai Super Kings, which topped the league phase, in the title round. Mumbai defeated CSK in the Qualifier 1 before routing them again in the final. It was a complete domination by Mumbai Indians who won 3 out of 4 matches against CSK in IPL 2015. Here are a few reasons why this MI XI was the best winning combination of all their four winning XI in IPL so far.
The captain led from the front
Rohit Sharma came in as early as the first over, after the departure of opener Parthiv Patel for a duck. He then tore apart the CSK bowling with 26-ball 50 with 6 fours and 2 sixes. By the time Rohit departed, Mumbai Indians were in a strong position at 120/2 in 12 overs. The run-rate never dipped after a great start, as Mumbai posted a formidable 202/5.
Other batsmen come to the party
Lendl Simmons, the other opener, matched stroke for stroke with captain Rohit Sharma and struck a quickfire 68 off 45 balls with 8 fours and 3 sixes. He and Rohit posted 119-run stand for the second wicket in 11.1 overs at more than 10 runs per over. After both Simmons and Rohit departed at the team’s score of 120, other batsmen Kieron Pollard (36) and Ambati Rayudu (36) kept the momentum going to help MI post a big total.
Bowlers came to the party
Led by Lasith Malinga and Mitchell McClenaghan, Mumbai Indians kept taking wickets at regular intervals while keeping the CSK’s run-rate well below the asking run-rate. McClenaghan struck first, dismissing Michael Hussey for 4. McClenaghan then dismissed the dangerous Dwayne Bravo, while Malinga took care of MS Dhoni to kill CSK’s chase. After that, it was just a formality for Mumbai to wrap up their second IPL title.
A team’s effort
Batsmen, bowlers and fielders came to the party in this winning campaign for Mumbai Indians. Led by Rohit, the team just steamrolled CSK in the final and came out victorious in a one-sided final. It was a complete team’s effort from Rohit and Co. In this winning XI, not one individual can be pointed out for the victory, but every player in the XI made some meaning contribution to grab the title.
Why other winning Mumbai Indians XI in the other three IPL finals lost the race?
The other three IPL finals MI won was closely-contest title rounds, and two of them were won by just a run. In all the other three IPL finals, one cricketer’s individual brilliance overshadowed the rest of Mumbai Indians players, but in the 2015 IPL final, almost all the players in the Mumbai Indians XI contributed to the win.
For example, in 2013 IPL final, Kieron Pollard made a title-winning 60 not out off 30 balls. In the 2017 IPL final, Krunal Pandya made a brilliant contribution of 47, while the next-best score was 24 by Rohit in a low-scoring thriller, and in the 2019 IPL final, Kieron Pollard’s 41 not out made the difference in the end results.
But in the 2015 IPL final, it was a complete team’s effort, unlike the other finals Mumbai Indians won.
Photo courtesy: Mumbai Indians' Facebook page
