2013 was a year of many firsts for the Men in Blue and Gold. A sweet throwback to it reminds us of a time when legends like Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Ponting played for the team. However, that was not the only speciality about this year. 

IPL 2013 would turn out to be iconic for more reasons than just that. It was a year of transition, of youngsters taking over, filling up the giant boots of the legends. It was the year many of our stars of today showed us the promise of a brighter future. And it was the year the team won its first IPL title. 

As we celebrate eight years of Mumbai Indians’ first title victory, let us have a look at some of the best things that happened in the sixth edition of the IPL. 

Rohit takes over the captaincy 

Australian legend Ricky Ponting was the captain of the Mumbai Indians outfit, until he decided to drop himself from the games due to his poor form after a match against Delhi in Feroz Shah Kotla on April 21st, 2013. 

On April 24th, 2013, a young Rohit Sharma, well aided by his coaches and by Ponting from the sidelines, captained Mumbai Indians for the first time. It was against the then defending champions, KKR, at Eden Gardens, which would soon go on to become one of Rohit’s favourite hunting grounds. 

The youngster captained his side to a 5-wicket victory, chasing down a target of 160 in 19.5 overs. While Dwayne Smith was the Man of the Match for his 62 (45), the new captain himself had started off with a 34 (28). 

Malinga becomes the first to 100 IPL wickets 

On May 18th, 2013, Lasith Malinga climbed a peak that no other bowler had. The Sri Lankan pacer had become the first player to get to 100 IPL wickets in a game against KXIP (now Punjab Kings). 

Bowling the last over of Punjab’s innings was Malinga. While he had been expensive in the game, he made amends in the final over, taking three wickets - Gurkeerat Mann, Piyush Chawla and Praveen Kumar, to restrict KXIP to 183/8. 

With that wicket of Praveen Kumar’s Malinga became the first player to get to 100 IPl wickets. He also thanked Mahela Jayawardene for it after the game. Despite not playing the 2020 and 2021 editions, Malinga tops the list till date, with 170 IPL wickets. 

Harbhajan, Mitchell Johnson get most wickets for MI 

This year saw some exceptional bowling performances from the Mumbai Indians team. The two big contributors to taking wickets were Mitchell Johnson and Harbhajan Singh. Both took 24 wickets apiece to share the third position for the most wickets in IPL 2013. 

Johnson’s best came in a game against CSK. With his 3/27, he bowled MI to a huge 60-run win against a team that would go on to become an arch nemesis for the Men in Blue and Gold. He struck every 16 balls, and bowled at an economy rate of 7.17. 

Harbhajan Singh was measly in terms of giving away runs, bowling at 6.51 runs per over. His best bowling figures were 3/14 came from 19 matches at a strike rate of 17.5. The two bowlers were the best performers for MI with the ball in 2013. 

Dinesh Karthik, Rohit top score for MI 

Rohit Sharma not only took up captaincy in IPL 2013, but he also top scored for the Men in Blue and Gold. In 19 games, Rohit had amassed 538 runs at a healthy strike rate of 131.54. His best of 79* came in a winning cause against KXIP. 

Dinesh Karthik also had a fine run in this season. The wicketkeeper-batsman added 510 runs to his IPL kitty at a strike rate of 124.08. His high score of 86 (48) helped MI crush DD (now Delhi Capitals) by 44 runs.  

While Rohit had 35 fours and 28 sixes to his name, Karthik got a whopping 54 fours to his tally, topped off by 14 sixes. Kieron Pollard was third at 420 runs, his best season with the bat till date. 

The first IPL final and title for the team 

MI knew on entering the final that they had their biggest test so far separating the team and the prestigious trophy. However, the team put up a clinical performance to clinch the game, and the title of Champions, to end the tournament on a high. 

Top scoring for MI in that game was Kieron Pollard, whose 60* (32) was crucial in helping MI set a target of 149 for CSK to chase down. His efforts also got him the Man of the Match title in the all important game. 

The bowlers came to the party and seamlessly defended a total that was not looking as high as one would have wanted a first innings score in the final to look like. All the bowlers took at least one wicket, with Malinga, Johnson and Harbhajan taking two. The team restricted CSK to 125/9 with its timely strikes to win the game by 23 runs! 

Farewell for legends Ponting, Sachin 

The two cricketing giants, who owned the world of batting numbers, made every 90s kids’ dream come true when they walked in to open the batting for MI in 2013. While the combination lasted only a few games, it gave the Paltan and all other cricket fans enough to cherish for a lifetime. 

Both Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Ponting played their final IPL games in 2013. After the IPL final against CSK, Sachin also explicitly announced that this would be his last. The Mumbai Indians gave this GOAT a lap of honour, lifted by the team players. 

From 26-YO Rohit Sharma taking up the baton of captaincy from the experienced Ricky Ponting, to the team winning its first IPL trophy, 2013 saw a lot of firsts. This IPL trophy was not just the end of IPL 2013, but the beginning of a series of wins that was going to come for this team hereafter.