Hardik Pandya's Captaincy Under Scrutiny After Mumbai Indians Poor IPL 2026 Performance

Mumbai Indians face a difficult review after finishing ninth in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season, with Hardik Pandya's leadership under close scrutiny. Mumbai Indians also struggled to get meaningful contributions from Hardik Pandya as an all-rounder. Batting coach Kieron Pollard described the campaign as disappointing and accepted that expectations around results and performances were not met across the group.

Pollard pointed to shared responsibility for the poor season, rather than targeting one person. "No one is going to sit here and put blame on point fingers. When you lose, especially, you have to look at it from a collective perspective. You win some, you lose some. But, at the end of the day, I wouldn't question certain things," he said.

Hardik Pandya captaincy and Mumbai Indians' collective failure

Speaking after the defeat against Rajasthan Royals in Mumbai Indians' final fixture on Sunday, Pollard admitted that Hardik Pandya's captaincy "has not gone as well". Hardik Pandya, who returned to Mumbai Indians as captain for IPL 2026, could now face questions over the role after the team ended near the bottom of the table and failed to show sustained improvement.

Pollard acknowledged that Hardik Pandya did not reach the levels expected by the franchise. "From a leadership perspective on Hardik, yes, it has not gone as well as he would have wanted as an individual," Pollard told reporters. "It might not have gone how we would have wanted as a management staff. But one thing you (should) know that we have tried each and everything to give him the best opportunity to lead the franchise, to do well."

Pollard stressed that effort was not lacking from Hardik Pandya or the rest of the side, even if outcomes remained poor. "He (Pandya) was trying; we all were trying, and it just didn't work out for us. You sit, you talk, (and) see what is (for the) best. Never know what is going to happen. For us, let us just lick our wounds in (this) time and hopefully come back stronger in the 12 months," Pollard said.

Hardik Pandya captaincy and squad changes for next IPL season

The batting coach accepted that Mumbai Indians are likely to make changes before the next IPL cycle but warned against reacting in haste to the ninth-place finish. Asked whether the franchise needed a fresh start considering the number of senior players, Pollard replied, "Right now, is not the time and place to talk about that," indicating discussions will happen later.

Pollard explained that the management will first seek a clear review before acting on Mumbai Indians' issues under Hardik Pandya captaincy. "All these things would be sort of emotional decisions and thinking of every aspect of what is needed, everyone needs that time and space to go sit down, recollect, have a fair assessment as to where everything actually went wrong for us." "That is 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, that would be irresponsible from a management perspective," he added.

Hardik Pandya captaincy and decision to rest Jasprit Bumrah

Another major talking point from the final league match was the exclusion of Jasprit Bumrah, with Pollard stating that resting the fast bowler was the "smarter option". "Jasprit is an individual who wears his heart on his sleeve and when you look at this match today, you're going to get two points if you play (well). Then what's that going to do for us if we finish on a win, finish on a high?," Pollard said.

Pollard underlined the need to balance immediate results with player welfare, even in a troubled season for Hardik Pandya captaincy. "Sometimes, you need to understand the player, understand what is necessary at this point in time. From a selection perspective, we didn't know that today would have been right for him to play with the other guys on the bench." "We have depth and we are building young guys, so trying something different. I don't see anything wrong with that from our perspective."

Pollard urged observers not to read too much into Bumrah's absence. "Let's not look too much into that. It's the last game of the season. It's not that we could have qualified as well, and he is a prized possession for Indian cricket. Sometimes you have to take the smarter option." The call reflected long-term planning despite the immediate disappointment around results and Hardik Pandya captaincy.

Reflecting on the wider campaign, Pollard described IPL 2026 as a story of missed chances for the five-time champions. "It has been a season of what-ifs and overall disappointing for all of us. Everyone would have felt the same way. There's no hiding from that. We weren't good throughout the entire tournament," he said, summing up Mumbai Indians' struggles under Hardik Pandya captaincy.

Pollard admitted Mumbai Indians repeatedly failed to build momentum when opportunities appeared. "We weren't able to string together wins and use the momentum when we got it. At the end of it, when you look at it rationally, we got the position that we deserved in terms of the type of cricket that we played throughout the tournament," Pollard added. The assessment left Mumbai Indians and Hardik Pandya facing a crucial review period before the next season.