IPL 2023: Mumbai Indians Have To Move Forward And Form Team For Next 4-5 Years: Harbhajan Singh Urges MI To Release Kieron Pollard

Harbhajan Singh, a seasoned spinner for India, believes that the Mumbai Indians should release Kieron Pollard in advance of the mini-auction.

Since 2010, Pollard has been a member of the Mumbai Indians, a team with which he has had a long-standing relationship. The Windies all-rounder formerly held a position in the leadership group, but his performance last season left room for concern.

In 11 games for Mumbai last season, Kieron Pollard scored 144 runs with a meagre strike rate of 107.46.

Mumbai Indians had a terrible IPL 2022 season, finishing last in the standings with just four victories in their 14 games. The five-time IPL champions released Quinton de Kock and Trent Boult in favour of keeping Pollard, which cost them a hefty INR 6 crore.

Harbhajan believes that Mumbai will find it difficult to accept the call, but he urged that the management find a replacement so that things may continue in the future.

“Well, I think it will be very tough for the Mumbai Indians to release Kieron Pollard.” He’s been there for quite some time. But, yes, there are times when you have to make some difficult decisions, and perhaps this is one of them. “They have to move forward and form a team for the next 4-5 years and try to find someone who can do what Pollard has done over the years,” Harbhajan Singh said on Star Sports.

“They should target Cameron Green in the upcoming mini-auction”: Harbhajan Singh

Former Mumbai Indians player Harbhajan Singh believes that the upcoming mini-auction should focus on acquiring promising Australian all-rounder Cameron Green.

“Yes, they have Tim David, who can do a similar job, and there is another Australian in the auction, Cameroon Green.” I believe he will be considered for a position in the Mumbai setup. Of course, it will be a difficult decision, but at some point, you have to make those decisions,”  Harbhajan Singh added.

The franchises’ final list of retained players must be submitted by November 15 as per a deadline set by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). This time, each team is allowed to keep up to 15 players and must release the other 10. Last year, however, the maximum number of players on a squad was 25, while the minimum was 18.

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