“If this had happened, if we had done this, if we had done that, if we had played this one, if we had batted, it’s a bit of that,” Pollard said at the press conference after the game. “Overall, it has been disappointing for all of us as Mumbai Indians. I’m sure the fans and everyone would have felt the same and there’s no hiding from that. We weren’t good the entire tournament. We weren’t able to sort of string together wins and use the momentum when we got it.”
But it wasn’t yet time to discuss specifics and point out shortcomings.
“Right now is not the time and place to talk about that [post mortem]. All these things will be sort of emotional decisions and thinking of every aspect of what’s needed,” Pollard said. “Everyone needs that time and space to go, sit down, recollect, have a fair idea and assessment as to where it went wrong for us. That’s 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, I think that will be irresponsible from a management perspective.”
When the review happens, Pollard expects it to “be thorough”.
“Guys are going to sit back and actually think about what’s needed,” he said in response to the five-time champions not winning a title since 2020. “It has been a while since we won the championship and that’s something that we have accepted as a team. And I said, another disappointing campaign adding to what would have transpired before. So deep thinking is going to go into it.”
“We didn’t think that today would have been right for him to play. We had other guys on the bench. We have depth in our bowling. We have young guys. So trying something different, I don’t see anything wrong with that”
Pollard on leaving out Bumrah for the last game
“If we go back 12 months, we finish third [fourth, in IPL 2025],” Pollard said in response to a question on retentions and releases prior to this season. “So that in itself justifies some of the changes that you would have made before. Now, finishing ninth, you’re not wanting to question it. I think that’s the inconsistencies that we need to sort of stay away from and understand strategically where we need to get better.
“And from a leadership perspective, Hardik, yes, it has not gone maybe as well as he would have wanted as an individual. But one thing you know is that we’d have tried each and everything to give him the best opportunity to lead the franchise and do well. And again, no one is going to sit here and point fingers. I think when you lose, you have to look at it from a collective perspective. So you win some, you lose some. He was trying, we all were trying and it just didn’t work out for us.”
Bumrah, meanwhile, had his leanest season in terms of wickets since 2015, when he played just four matches and got three wickets. This time, while his economy rate was excellent (8.37), all he got were four wickets.
“To be honest, he came in with a bit of a niggle after the [T20] World Cup. We tried to manage it. He wasn’t his best self in terms of fitness perspective and all of that,” Pollard said. “But he was able to come and try to deliver.”
After 13 games, Bumrah was left out for MI’s season-ender.
“You’re going to get two points if you played. What’s that going to do for us,” Pollard said. “I think sometimes, you need to understand the player, understand what’s necessary at this point in time. And I think from a selection perspective, we didn’t think that today would have been right for him to play. We had other guys on the bench. We have depth in our bowling. We have young guys. So trying something different, I don’t see anything wrong with that.
“So let’s not look too much into that. This is the last game of the season. It’s not that we could have qualified [for the playoffs]. And he’s a prized possession for Indian cricket. So sometimes you have to take the smarter option.”
