“My focus is that first match, it’s the elephant in the room”: Jayawardene on breaking the jinx

By Mumbai Indians

Charcha with Mahela - One Family Vibes 

A special day for MI Paltan awaited as they connected, spoke and learnt from the mastermind behind the scenes, our Head Coach, Mahela Jayawardene. He kept it unfiltered, real, and effortless as he conversed with fans 🫡. At Mumbai Indians, it is never just about the cricket played, it is about conversations bringing each one of us closer! 💙

Just like Paltan, Mahela also emphasized on starting the IPL on a winning note and applauded the way the Wankhede crowd supported and came out in large numbers to cheer the men in Blue and Gold during home games and also stressed on the need to break MI’s first match jinx 👊. “I haven't had a disappointing Wankhede crowd. Now, eight years with the team…six years as a coach. The elephant in the room is the first game for us. How do we get over the line? I am going to really focus on that first game. Cross that, get a good start this season rather than us playing catching up later. I want to do things in a different way, if possible… so that we have the flexibility of trying different combinations as well,” he said.

When asked about data and match ups, MJ stated that while data plays a key role, he does not rely on it blindly. For him, intuition drives decisions around team strategy and match-ups with data acting as a tool to validate that instinct, not replace it. 

Finally, Mahela shared his fascination for the city of Mumbai apart from cricket. “Everday I see a different part of Mumbai and it fascinates me. Sometimes being stuck in traffic, how the traders are trading and how people drive. It does not bore me. I usually take the late night flight and on Marine Drive, at 3 AM it is like day time. No one is sleeping. I have not seen that anywhere else in the world.” ❤️

The countdown officially begins as our boys in Blue and Gold are ready to kick off their campaign with fresh energy and eyes firmly set for title number 6. We begin the season at our fortress- the big W. 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆