We just weren’t good enough: Jayawardene on MI’s disappointing IPL 2026 campaign

Mumbai Indians’ IPL 2026 campaign officially came to an end after a heartbreaking last-ball defeat to defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru, leaving head coach Mahela Jayawardene to admit that the five-time champions were simply “not good enough” this season.

The dramatic two-wicket loss to RCB on Sunday confirmed MI’s exit from the playoff race and extended their disappointing run in the league, marking the sixth consecutive season in which they have failed to lift the IPL trophy. With only three league matches remaining, Mumbai are now left fighting to avoid another bottom-place finish, something they have already experienced twice since 2021.

Advertisement

Reflecting on the campaign, Jayawardene acknowledged that inconsistency across departments proved costly for the side throughout the season.

“It’s disappointing,” Jayawardene said after the match. “We had our chances during the season, but we just weren’t good enough. We lacked consistency with both bat and ball, and in a competition like this, those small margins make a huge difference.”

Mumbai Indians struggled to build momentum at any stage of the tournament despite possessing one of the strongest squads on paper. Their season was repeatedly disrupted by injuries and fitness concerns involving key players, which prevented the management from settling on a consistent playing combination.

Jayawardene revealed that the team had to constantly deal with availability issues during the campaign.

“What people probably don’t know is that we dealt with a lot of injuries and niggles throughout the season,” he said. “Some players weren’t available at important stages. Ideally, I would have liked our core group to play together consistently. But those are not excuses. We still had a quality squad, and overall we simply weren’t good enough.”

One of the major talking points during MI’s difficult season has been the continued backing of senior players despite inconsistent performances. Captain Hardik Pandya and senior batter Suryakumar Yadav both came under scrutiny as Mumbai failed to produce consistent results.

However, Jayawardene strongly defended the experienced core group, insisting that their effort and commitment could never be questioned despite the disappointing outcomes on the field.

“No, I don’t think it’s difficult to continue backing them,” he said. “The commitment and hard work they’ve shown has been unbelievable. Our core group is extremely valuable to us, and you can’t keep changing players all the time.”

The former Sri Lanka captain also reminded critics that many of Mumbai’s senior players had recently played a major role in India’s successful World Cup triumph, and believed the issues this season were more collective than individual.

“They had a fantastic World Cup and achieved something special there,” Jayawardene said. “It’s just that as a team unit this season, we haven’t performed well enough.”