'Bring that energy and spirit': New MI coach Kieron Pollard warns Wankhede fans against cheering for RCB and CSK during IPL 2027 campaign originally appeared on Cricket News. Add Cricket News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- Kieron Pollard has taken over as Mumbai Indians head coach, replacing Mahela Jayawardene at the helm.
- The MI legend wants the Wankhede Stadium to be free of the yellow and red colours of CSK and RCB.
- MI finished ninth in IPL 2026, winning four of their 14 matches.
Kieron Pollard wants the blue flag flying at the Wankhede again
The sight of yellow shirts and red shirts filling up sections of the Wankhede during Mumbai Indians home games became a familiar sight over the last couple of seasons, and new MI head coach Kieron Pollard would like it to stop.
Speaking in his first interview since taking charge, on the franchise's YouTube channel on Saturday, the new head coach said restoring the atmosphere at the ground was the first item on his list.
"My first task is… bring that energy and spirit. That when you walk into the Wankhede Stadium, you are not seeing the yellows and the reds and stuff like that," Pollard said.
He did not put the responsibility on the supporters, though. In the same breath, he made clear that the crowd would follow only if the team gave them a reason to."You want to see that blue flag flying, and you want to see that passion and spirit from the fans. And that can only come firstly from us," he told the fans.
He believes that's where his job as the new head coach starts. He continued, "So that's where our work sort of starts—in terms of understanding what we are playing for and who we are playing for. We recognise the fact that we have not been where we wanted to be in the last couple of years."
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Pollard takes over after two underwhelming seasons for the Mumbai Indians
Mahela Jayawardene stepped down on October 17, ending a decade-long association with the franchise across two stints as head coach. He won three IPL titles in the first of those, in 2017, 2019 and 2020, before returning for the 2025 season.
The second spell did not go the same way. Mumbai reached Qualifier 2 in 2025, which suggested a revival was underway, but 2026 brought four wins from 14 matches and a ninth-place finish, second from the bottom.
Pollard arrives with as much MI history as anyone available. He played 189 IPL matches for the franchise across 13 seasons, scoring 3,412 runs at a strike rate of 147.32 with 223 sixes, and won five titles before retiring and joining the coaching staff as batting coach. He said the franchise should not pretend that the last two years didn't happen.
"So there's no hiding from that," Pollard said. "But we are going to try our best now to ensure that we continue to play for that badge, team above self, and then ensure that when the opposition comes, it's something that they remember from the past." For Pollard, first the team needs to understand why they failed and revisit the last few seasons before they can start anew.
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Pollard has a squad to sort out before he can worry about the crowd
The timing gives him very little room. The IPL 2027 retention deadline falls in mid-November, and the mini auction is in Goa on December 16, which means a coach appointed in late October has weeks rather than months to settle what his squad looks like.
Hardik Pandya's future is the largest question sitting on his desk. The captain has been the subject of trade interest from several franchises, with Mumbai yet to decide whether he will be made available at all, and that call shapes everything else about the squad.
The appeal to the badge is a reasonable place for Pollard to start, since he is one of the few people who can make it without sounding hollow. Five titles and 13 seasons buy a coach that much credibility in a dressing room.
What it does not do is fill the Wankhede with blue. Rival fans turn up in numbers at grounds where the home side keeps losing, and they stop coming when it stops being fun. Four wins from 14 is the reason for the yellows and reds, not the cause of them.
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