Five-time champions Mumbai Indians (MI) will not qualify for the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) play-offs, according to former Australian international Tom Moody.
MI crashed and burned by eight wickets against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in their IPL 2023 opener at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday.
Tilak Varma's 84 not out of 46 helped Rohit Sharma & Co. put up a respectable total of 171 in their 20 overs. In response, RCB got off to a flying start with Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis forging a 148-run opening partnership which helped the hosts chase down 172 with 22 balls to spare.
The former RCB captain, Kohli, ended with an unbeaten knock of 82 runs off 49 balls and smashed MI's trump card Jofra Archer for 28 off just 17 balls.
MORE: How to watch IPL 2023 season online and on TV | Full list of players, teams for IPL 2023
Mumbai Indians squad lacks balance?
MI were outplayed in every department which led Tom Moody, former Sunrisers Hyderabad coach, to unleash a scathing attack on the men in blue and express doubts over the lack of experience in the squad.
"I'm concerned (for MI) because I sort of called it before the start of the IPL that I didn't think they'd be anywhere near the finals. I just feel there are too many holes amongst their team and I don't think they've got a balance in their squad either. They don't have the domestic bowling depth and the international bowling depth", he said during a chat with ESPNCricinfo.
Moody questioned the recruitment of Tim David, Tristian Stubbs, and Dewald Brevis in the MI middle order and cast doubts on the balance of the squad.
Where did Mumbai Indians finish in IPL 2022?
It must be noted that Mumbai Indians finished 10th in the standings in the 2022 IPL and their inexperience was deemed to be one of the factors for their poor performance last season by the pundits.
MORE: Latest betting odds for IPL 2023
How many times have Mumbai Indians qualified for IPL play-offs?
Mumbai Indian are one of the most successful teams in the IPL, winning the tournament a record five times.
They have qualified for the IPL play-offs nine times in 15 seasons. The last time they qualified for the play-offs was in 2020 when they went on to win the tournament.
When will Mumbai Indians play next?
After a chastening defeat to RCB in their opener, MI would hope to prove Moody wrong by getting back on the winning track when they face Chennai Super Kings on Saturday at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
