Four losses in five games. Two of those at home. Five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians (MI) started their season with a win but have dipped since, with Mahela Jayawardene saying the side is still trying to find the "spark", pointing in particular to the bowling as an area that hasn't quite clicked but saying that the burden of the results does not rest solely on captain Hardik Pandya.
"I don't think it's just on Hardik, I think it's on every one of us when we are not doing well," MI head coach Jayawardene said after the seven-wicket loss to Punjab Kings (PBKS). "It's not an individual. It's pretty much on me, everyone who is involved in the management and all that to see how can we be better.
"I know we are playing good cricket. We are not taken out completely, but at the same time the other teams are much better, clinical; obviously the confidence is high as well when they have that kind of start so we just need to control phases that we can control. So I think it's not just on one individual. As a franchise, as a team management, we need to do things better to get into some rhythm and then get a few wins under our belt that will give us that confidence."
Part of the inconsistency, in Jayawardene's opinion, has been because of player availability and injury. Rohit Sharma was out of the PBKS match with an injury, while Mitchell Santner, who joined the team after IPL 2026 started, missed the match with illness. Hardik too had been unavailable for the match against DC because he was unwell.
"I think the four games that we lost - two away and two at home - were different kind of games and we did try some combinations and some of those combinations were forced on us because of injuries and players not [being] available," Jayawardene said. "So [we are] trying to create something of what is available. But we are finding some spark in certain areas but the other side is finding that especially with the ball; we haven't been able to penetrate oppositions so that's something that we really have to work harder [at] and see how we can improve on that."
While MI have been found wanting in all three departments, their struggles with the ball have been particularly striking. Jasprit Bumrah has gone wicketless in all five games, and against PBKS, he conceded runs at 10.25. Has Bumrah going wicketless put added pressure on the other bowlers in the side?
"I think Bumrah is bowling well - it's just where we are not putting pressure in the powerplay," Jayawardene said. "They [opposition batters] know they don't need to take too much risk against Bumrah as well, and we have tried a few different things, which he is trying as well, but they are batting well. I can't put a finger and say why he's not taken wicket… but as a unit we have lacked that penetration in different surfaces and that's something that we need to work [on] and see what we need to do."
Bumrah has also been bowling at a marginally reduced pace, and Jayawardene attributed it to workload. "I think initially because he had a slight niggle… we wanted to build him up, over the last few games his speeds have gone up, we've looked at all that, so he's very comfortable.
"Sometimes you need a bit of luck as well: the other [bowler] is taking a few wickets and then he gets some match-ups which he's very comfortable, very good. [He] bowled some really good balls initially to Shreyas [Iyer] as well, wasn't lucky enough. I think once he starts taking wickets, might not be able to stop him doing that."
As for Rohit's return, the approach has been cautious, with the management keen not to rush him back. "On Ro, he started running yesterday, [we'll take] day to day to see how he feels," Jayawardene said. "He knows his body better than anybody else so it's nothing serious but at the same time we don't want to push and it's early season still."