Courtesy: MI
On Sunday, October 13, Mumbai Indians reappointed Mahela Jayawardene as the head coach ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season, replacing Mark Boucher in the role. After Mumbai Indians finished in 10th and bottom place in the IPL standings last year under their new captain Hardik Pandya, the changes at the helm in the franchise were expected, and this is the first one of them.
Notably, Mahela Jayawardene was the head coach of the Mumbai Indians from 2017 to 2022, during which the franchise won three IPL titles. After doing exceptionally well as the head coach of MI, he took up a bigger role of the Global Head of Performance of the franchise, overseeing the coaching and scouting for Mumbai Indians in the IPL, MI Cape Town in the SA20, MI Emirates in the ILT20, and MI New York in the MLC.
My journey within the MI family has always been one of evolution: Mahela Jayawardene
After taking over the head coach role of Mumbai Indians in the IPL, Mahela Jayawardene spoke about his journey with the franchise before stating his intention to take them forward in the near future. He was quoted as saying in a press release, “My journey within the MI family has always been one of evolution. In 2017, the focus was on bringing together a talented group of individuals to play the best cricket ever and we did very well.”
“Now to return, at the same moment in history, where we look ahead at the future and the opportunity to further strengthen the love of MI, build on the vision of the owners, and continue to add to the history of Mumbai Indians, is an exciting challenge I am looking forward to,” the Sri Lankan legend added. In the current era of coaching in men’s franchise cricket, Mahela Jayawardene has been widely regarded as one of the most successful coaches of all-time.
Meanwhile, the Mumbai Indians official, Akash Ambani, gave his thoughts on bringing back Mahela Jayawardene, and remarked, “We are thrilled to have Mahela back as the Head Coach of Mumbai Indians. With our global teams having found their footing within their ecosystems, the opportunity to bring him back to MI arose. His leadership, knowledge, and passion for the game have always benefited MI. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Mark Boucher for his contribution over the last two seasons. His expertise and dedication were pivotal during his time, and has now become an integral member of the MI family.”
