IPL 2023: 5 Players Mumbai Indians should have picked but didn't

Mumbai Indians finished rock bottom in the last Indian Premier League (IPL) season, and part of the reason behind that was their auction in 2022. They built a squad for the future and did not mind having a poor outing. They invested majorly in players below the age of 26 and in the process, left a few gaping holes. However, they would have been aware that they couldn't afford to repeat the same for another season ahead of the 2023 auction. With a pretty good purse, MI would have entered the auction hoping to plug the remaining gaps and compete for the trophy with their highly talented squad. However, that wasn’t the case, as there were a few players that they should have picked but didn’t. Here are 5 Players Mumbai Indians should've picked but didn't 1. Adam Zampa Mumbai Indians made a mistake by not buying a quality leg-spinner in the auction and that could come back to haunt them. Buying an overseas spinner has never been their mode of operation, but back then they had at least one proven Indian spinner in their squad. This time, all their spinners are inexperienced, and the only experienced one is Piyush Chawla. However, he has been on the decline and hasn't averaged less than 29 since 2017, and even went unsold in 2022. Their poor spin attack was one of the reasons behind their eight-game losing streak at the start of the season. This is where Adam Zampa would have been a valuable addition as he was arguably the best overseas spinner available. He has been amongst the best bowlers in T20s over the last couple of years and has become a lot more consistent. The Australian would have provided them an option in case they wanted to try a different combination. Instead, the bulk of the bowling in the middle phase of the innings will have to be done by the likes of Kumar Kartikeya, Shams Mulani, and Hrithik Shokeen, all of whom have little experience at this level. The leg-spinner will now play for the Rajasthan Royals in the upcoming edition of the league. 2. Shivam Mavi Shivam Mavi was expected to be amongst the most in-demand Indian players at the auction, and it was the case, as he went for Rs. 6 crore by the defending champions Gujarat Titans. An Indian pacer who can bowl at 140 kph is a rare commodity in mini auctions. He can even bat is a bonus. He made his international debut in the recent T20I series against Sri Lanka, where he delivered a match-winning performance of 4/22. Mavi showed his ability to swing the new ball, and his low-arm action means that he has the potential to become a yorker specialist as well. While his IPL performances haven't been great thus far, he certainly has the potential to become a good player. The Rohit Sharma-led team could've done with a player like Mavi in their squad, given that they have always had an issue with the 2nd Indian pace option after Jasprit Bumrah. 3. Sikandar Raza Sikandar Raza became Zimbabwe's first IPL player in nearly a decade when the Punjab Kings raised their paddle for him at Rs.50 Lakh. He was in his career-best form last year and had several outstanding games against some big teams. The 35-year-old averaged 35 across 24 T20Is in 2022 and had a belligerent strike rate of 150. With the ball, he picked up 25 wickets at a strike rate of 17.2 and conceded at barely over 6. Raza even picked up match-winning three-wicket hauls against Pakistan and West Indies in the World Cup. While he isn't a leg spinner, he's still been picking up a lot of wickets and would have been handy in the middle overs. The Zimbabwean would have fulfilled two requirements for Mumbai as he doubles up as an experienced spinner and even an impressive finisher with the bat. 4. Vidhwath Kaverappa Vidhwath Kaverappa has been one of the finds of the domestic campaign and has been consistently good across formats. He only had an experience of two first-class games ahead of the new season, but has been able to quickly establish himself as a key component of Karnataka’s pace attack. He was the second highest wicket-taker in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Kaverappa picked up 18 wickets in eight games at an average of only 10.72 and had an economy of less than 6.4. He was also the fourth-highest wicket-taker in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. The 23-year-old is primarily a new-ball specialist and bowls in the 130s. He can move the ball both ways, and this interested Punjab Kings as they snapped him up at base price of INR 20 lakh. Mumbai Indians don’t have a lot of local pacers in their squad, and he would’ve been a useful pickup. With the impact player rule, they could have used him for three overs up front and subbed him out. 5. Reece Topley Reece Topley has been on the scene for a while now, and few would have experienced the ups and downs he has. He was seen as one of England’s brightest prospects a decade back and made his debut at the age of 21 itself but has had a stop-start career due to injuries. However, he has resurrected his career over the last 12 months and has become an important part of England’s white-ball setups. The 28-year-old won his maiden IPL contract when he was bought by RCB for Rs.1.9 crore in the 2023 auction. It was a fair reward for an excellent 2022, where he picked up 43 wickets in 33 T20s while conceding at only 8. The left-arm pacer is complete bowler and can bowl across all phases without a dip in performance. He can move the new ball, nail yorkers, has a bag of variations, and given his height, Topley can bowl hard lengths with ease. For a player with such an all-round skillset, his price was an absolute bargain. MI was also amongst the bidders for him but surprisingly backed out. Fortunately for them, it might not backfire because they still have a formidable overseas pace attack of Jofra Archer, Jhye Richardson, Jason Behrendorff, and Duan Jansen. For a better experience: Download the CricTracker app from the IOS App Store and Google Play Store

Topics

Featured Section

Current Series

Cricket Fantasy Tips

Cricket Stats

IPL Teams

ICC Rankings

Interviews

Twitter Reactions

Cricket Appeal

Social Tracker

More Links

# Follow Us

Other Sports

IPL 2023: 5 Players Mumbai Indians should have picked but didn't

Mumbai Indians roped in Cameron Green for a whopping INR 17.50 crore, making him the second-most expensive player in IPL history.

2. Shivam Mavi

Latest Articles

Global Super League 2024 final shifted to December 6

AUS vs IND 1st Test, Stats Preview

Agarwal backs Devdutt Padikkal ahead of Perth Test