Five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians are ready to make a fresh start in the IPL 2025. While they finished in 10th or last place in the IPL 2024, they failed to reach the playoffs in three of the last four seasons. The Blue Army are hoping to win their first IPL title since 2021 to become the first team to win six IPL trophies. 

Top-Order Batters

• Rohit Sharma, Ryan Rickelton (wk), Tilak Varma

While former Indian captain Rohit Sharma is an undoubted opening choice for the Mumbai Indians, who can provide a firing start, South African left-handed opener Ryan Rickelton is one of the consistent opening batters in T20 cricket since 2024; as the opener Rickelton has scored 1752 runs in 47 innings with a 40+ average and a strike rate of 158.12, including one century and 14 half-centuries. Both Rohit and Rickelton love to smash sixes, while the wicketkeeper-batter Rickelton has recorded 100+ sixes in T20 cricket since 2024.

Tilak Varma is the new shining name in the Indian T20I squad as the 22-year-old recorded two T20I centuries last November. In fact, he scored three T20 centuries last November, as he is the leading T20 run-scorer (857 runs) worldwide in the 2024-25 season with the help of three centuries and three half-centuries. He has hit 49 T20 sixes in the 2024-25 season, the second most T20 sixes in the ongoing season. 

See Also: Micheal Clarke Admits Jasprit Bumrah Is An Absolute Freak

Middle-Order Batters

• Suryakumar Yadav, Naman Dhir, Hardik Pandya

Indian T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav is known as a dangerous batter. While the right-handed batter isn’t in form recently, IPL 2025 is a great time for him to bring back his familiar dangerous batting form. His form will be crucial for the five-time IPL champions. 

The 25-year-old uncapped Indian middle-order batter Naman Dhir impressed in the last season for MI, which was his first IPL season. He scored 140 runs in seven games with one half-century and a strike rate of 177.21. Surely, his powerful batting can be an asset for his team. Dhir is also a useful part-time off-spinner with five wickets in eight T20 innings with the ball. 

There is no doubt about the cricket skills of the Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya. Due to suspension, he will start the IPL 2025 season from the Mumbai Indians’ second game. His aggressive finishing skill with the bat, similar quality bowling skills, especially useful for the slog overs, and top-quality fielding are the big points for his team.

Spinner(s)

• Mitchell Santner, Mujeeb Ur Rahman/Karn Sharma

New Zealand left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner is likely to play the main spin-bowling role for Mumbai Indians, while the Afghan star Mujeeb Ur Rahman is also a key spin bowling name. While experienced Santner is known as a bowling all-rounder, youngster Mujeeb can hit boundaries strongly. 

While every team can use a maximum of four overseas players, the Indian leg-spinner Karn Sharma can be a good alternative option. The 37-year-old has 76 wickets in 84 IPL matches, and he has to prove consistency to earn more call-ups. 

Pacers

• Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah

While injury-recovering Jasprit Bumrah will miss the early period of the IPL 2025, Deepak Chahar will have to play main roles with the ball along with New Zealand left-arm pacer Trent Boult. In the absence of Bumrah, Mumbai Indians can go with the English pacer Reece Topley or Indian left-arm pacer Arjun Tendulkar. 

As Deepak Chahar is the only strong Indian name in the MI pace-bowling lineup, in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, the 22-year-old pace-bowling all-rounder Raj Bawa can also be tested. During the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024-25, the Chandigarh youngster picked up 12 wickets in seven games.