File photo of Kieron Pollard and Rohit Sharma© BCCI/Sportzpics
Mumbai India’s topsy-turvy start to the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 campaign could be blamed on multiple factors. Rohit Sharma’s failure to give the team a solid start at the top is unarguably among the biggest factors on the list. As the wait for Rohit to get his bat to do the talking increases, several fans and former cricketers have raised questions. Mumbai Indians’ batting coach, Kieron Pollard, speaking at the pre-match press conference on Thursday, passionately jumped to the Hitman’s defence.
“I’ve played alongside Rohit since Under-19 cricket and he has forged his name and etched his name in history in the record books, in different situations, different formats of the game,” Pollard said. “He is a legend of the game in his own right, and as an individual as well.”
“There are times when you have a couple of low scores … he has earned the right as an individual to now enjoy his cricket and not be pressurised in certain situations. So let’s not judge on a couple of low scores. In cricket, we know we fail more than we succeed, and I’m sure we’ll be singing his praises when he gives us that big score, and then we’ll be on to the next hot topic,” he further said.
Mumbai Indians are still looking to hit their best form and Pollard feels adaptability to the challenges posed at them would be key.
“For me and for us, I think it’s more about adaptability in whatever is presented on a particular day,” Pollard said in the press conference. “As a former player and management, you want to be able to prepare for any eventuality, and you try to control things that you can control, and the nature of the surfaces is something that we can’t control as a management and as a playing group. So whatever is presented, that’s how you get to be called world class and legends that you are able to adapt to anything that is in front of you.”
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