Kieron Pollard begins coaching stint with Mumbai Indians ahead of 2023 IPL

The 16th edition of the Indian Premier League 2023 is scheduled to begin on March 31 and many would opine that the upcoming season could be the most exciting one in years, thanks to some new rules like the addition of the impact player and the return of the home-and-away format.

Ahead of the tournament, the most successful franchise in the competition – Mumbai Indian will look to improve upon their performances from the previous edition. Ahead of the start of the tournament, MI legend Kieron Pollard recently began his new role in the franchise as batting coach.

The former Windies skipper stressed the importance that Mumbai Indians have had on his career and how he would never represent another franchise again before making the decision to hang up his boots.

Call me Polly: Pollard to MI players

As Pollard begins a new chapter in his career as the batting coach of MI, the 35-year-old recently came forward to talk about his experience thus far as a batting coach.

“I have told them don’t call me coach, call me Polly. Words really can’t describe the feeling of playing for Mumbai Indians and representing the people of Mumbai,” Pollard said in a video on MI’s YouTube channel.

“They have done a lot for me as an individual and I guess I have done a lot for them from a player’s perspective, the bond we have, I guess it’s more than just cricket matches and things like that. For me, nothing will change; I’ll have the same sort of personality and character around the guys,” he added.

Mumbai Indians had a season to forget in the 2022 IPL. The Rohit Sharma-led side finished last in the IPL points table with just eight points in 14 games. The five-time champions will be without Jasprit Bumrah due to injury, and it could be quite a challenge for Rohit Sharma to lead MI to yet another IPL title.