Earlier this evening, the Mumbai Indians management, via the BCCI, announced the retained players ahead of the mega auction for IPL 2022. The Paltan will definitely be seeing captain Rohit Sharma, pacer Jasprit Bumrah, batter Suryakumar Yadav and Caribbean T20 veteran Keiron Pollard in the MI Blue and Gold for the near future. 

Prominent members of the team management expressed their thoughts behind the retention process, their preparation for IPL 2022 and more post the big reveal. Read up to see what Team Owner Akash Ambani, MI’s Director of Cricket Operations Zaheer Khan and MI’s Head Coach Mahela Jayawardene had to say.

We can’t wait to build a team that can bring Mumbai more glory: Akash Ambani

“It’s good to be here and tell our fans what our decisions are about the retention. I’ve been saying this for a long time, this is the hardest part of any IPL year, especially when you’re approaching a mega auction, you have to decide the four players who you get to keep. This is definitely the most heart wrenching and emotional time as owners of Mumbai Indians.”

“We’ve gone for four players and we’re very happy to announce, and we’ve put a bit of a twist to it. Our number one player is our captain Rohit Sharma, number two is Jasprit Bumrah, our number four player is Kieron Pollard and our third player is Suryakumar Yadav.”

“Polly has now been the longest standing player for the Mumbai Indians. He joined our team in 2010 and I’m so happy that he’s completed 11 years with us and we’re looking forward to the current cycle with him.”

“The last few weeks have been probably the most tough weeks that we’ve faced in this cycle for the entire Mumbai Indians. But whatever decisions we’ve made today are in the best interest to play our style of cricket and hopefully push on for another couple of championships in the coming years.”

“Thank you so much, Paltan, for all the support you’ve given us. I’ve been reading all the comments on Facebook, YouTube, and trying to understand what the fans want and make decisions based on their wishes. Their support is absolutely immense and we can’t wait to start this year’s IPL, build a team that can bring the city of Mumbai more glory and hopefully have a lot more championships in our trophy cabinet.”

“The preparation for the mega auction starts really early for us. We are very clear with our thought process and how we want to go about things. I just want to thank each and every player that has represented Mumbai Indians in the last four years. It’s been a pleasure to have them all in the team. Believe me when I say it, it’s been one of the hardest decisions that we have made. We’re really really happy and honoured to have you all as players. We wish you all the best and we look forward to having as many as we can back with the Mumbai Indians.”

It is tough to say goodbye to those who’ve done so well for the team: Zaheer Khan

“Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah’s names were no-brainers. We didn’t have to think much there. We’ve identified our leaders, and these players have been that way for a few years now. You can also add Pollard to that list. His journey had also started with Mumbai Indians in 2010 and today he’s considered one of the strongest finishers in this format. From that view, his retention was also not a difficult decision.”

“If you look at the retention list of Mumbai Indians, one thing that will catch your attention is that these players are all leaders in their own right. They have been playing consistently. However, those players whom we unfortunately couldn’t retain have been let go with a heavy heart. But if you look at it overall, there were definitely some tough decisions to make.”

“Picking Suryakumar Yadav as the third Indian was no easy decision. If you look at the team’s performance and the playing XI that walked into every match, or if you look at the squad as a whole, I feel he’s talented and brings value to the squad.”

“I would also like to thank the overseas players for the way they helped build a positive environment and helped keep the team spirits high. When your team wins, you always walk ahead with the happy memories from the dressing room. All these players were being discussed for probable retention, and not just three or four names from the lot.”

“Rahul Chahar has also been very valuable for the team. Likewise, every player we had to part with played their roles very well in the team. We have definitely taken this decision keeping the future in mind. Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Rahul Chahar, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya - the list goes on about the names we toyed with for retention.”

“There were definitely lots of discussions regarding the decision we took. We will also try our best to bring the players who were in the team back for the next season too, and we have definitely had talks around that too.”

“If you look at MI’s history for the last decade or so, the way we have approached cricket will not change as we go ahead without doubt. This team has won five championships and we will definitely look to stick to the values that brought us this success, and we will wholeheartedly attempt to stick to this in the future.”

“We’ve made these decisions thinking of how we’re going to move forward. The mega auctions are always tricky ones and it is always very tough to say goodbye to players who have done so wonderfully well for the team. So, that is something we felt, our emotions were running high. The good memories we made of all the victories is something that kept us going.”

We’ve made decisions thinking about our strategies going forward: Mahela Jayawardene

“Hardik has been amazing for Mumbai Indians and I’m sure that whatever happens going forward, he is always going to be a fantastic player. Yes, it is unfortunate that in the last couple of years he struggled with that injury. We had to look at all the options and then make a decision. If we could’ve retained five or more players, we would have been the happiest franchise, but we had to take a tough call.”

“We all put our hands up and made decisions thinking about our strategies going forward, which, whether right or wrong, we have now followed. We have no doubts about the players that we’ve had. We know they’re fabulous players and they’re always going to be for Mumbai Indians. We have an emotional attachment with each one of them, but there were decisions to make. We took these calls in the best way that we could.”

Heartiest congratulations to the retained players and the best wishes to all those who’ve helped us make so many memories. Irrespective of where your journey lands you in the near future, you will always be a part of One Family.