On this day, Mumbai Indians made history in 2011 as they won their first championship as a franchise. The Mumbai-based team won the 2011 edition of the Nokia Champions League T20 by defeating Royal Challengers Bangalore in the final.
Not many fans would remember that MI had a lot of injury issues in that competition. The likes of Rohit Sharma and Sachin Tendulkar were unavailable. Still, playing under Harbhajan Singh’s captaincy, the team lifted the trophy. Here’s a look at MI’s playing XI from the CLT20 2011 Final match and where are the players now.
Openers of Mumbai Indians – Aiden Blizzard and Sarul Kanwar
As mentioned ahead, MI played in the final without some of their star players. Australian batter Aiden Blizzard started the innings with uncapped Sarul Kanwar. Both players failed to score big. Blizzard has not played in BBL since 2018, while Kanwar plays first-class cricket for Chandigarh right now.
Middle Order – Ambati Rayudu, Suryakumar Yadav and Rajagopal Sathish
Three uncapped batters featured in MI’s middle-order in the big game against Royal Challengers Bangalore. Suryakumar Yadav scored 24 runs off just 17 balls. Rayudu plays for CSK now, while Yadav is one of the top T20I batters in the world. Sathish represents Chepauk Super Gillies in TNPL.
All Rounders – James Franklin, Kieron Pollard and Harbhajan Singh
James Franklin top-scored for MI in that game with a 41-run knock. His innings helped Mumbai score 139 runs in their first innings. Harbhajan Singh got out for a duck but scalped three wickets. Franklin, Singh and Pollard have retired from international cricket. Pollard still plays in IPL for MI.
Bowlers of Mumbai Indians – Lasith Malinga, Abu Nechim and Yuzvendra Chahal
The Indian bowling of MI was inexperienced as well. Abu Nechim was the top Indian pacer, while Chahal was their lead spinner. Chahal bowled a dream spell of 2/9 against RCB, while Malinga picked two wickets as well. Their efforts helped MI bowl RCB out for 108 runs. Malinga has retired, Chahal is India’s number one T20I spinner, while Nechim plays for Nagaland these days.
