The defending champions Mumbai Indians have suffered an early exit from the IPL 2024 playoffs after a dismal season saw them lose over half their matches. Their hopes of making the next round were dashed after Sunrisers Hyderabad's comprehensive 10-wicket victory over Lucknow Super Giants on Wednesday.
Mumbai Indians went into the match sitting 9th in the points table having won just 4 of their 12 games. Though they had two matches remaining, SRH's dominant display meant MI could no longer reach the required number of points to advance any further in the tournament.
It marks a disappointing end to Hardik Pandya's first season as MI captain. The franchise had high hopes for the season after bringing Pandya back but the team failed to fire as a cohesive unit. Their batting faltered on many occasions while the bowling looked lacklustre.
SRH's chasing masterclass starring half-centuries from Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma endorsed MI's early exit. Lucknow were restricted to 165 despite late fireworks from Ayush Badoni and Kane Williamson. Head and Sharma then cruised their side to a crushing win with over four overs still left.
With no chance of recovering, Mumbai Indians are the first team to crash out of contention for the all-important playoffs. It remains to be seen if the five-time champions will regroup and perform better in the upcoming seasons.
