On Tuesday, May 16, a very important 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) game between the Mumbai Indians (MI) and the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) will take place at the Ekana Cricket Stadium.
Five times winners MI has taken in a lot of players over its 16-year period, and some of them have had to leave. It could be because of bad form, bad team combinations, mega bids, or even just strategy. A large number of these players have moved on to other teams after being traded or winning an auction.
A few players who used to play for MI are now playing for the Lucknow Super Giants. After getting KL Rahul, Marcus Stoinis, and Ravi Bishnoi before the IPL 2022 mega-auction, LSG had to start from scratch to put together a team.
Let’s look at three former MI players who are now playing for LSG in the IPL 2023.
Quinton de Kock:
Quinton de Kock formerly worked with the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH), Delhi Daredevils (renamed Delhi Capitals), and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) before joining the five-time champions. De Kock has been one of the most reliable openers in the competition since his trade to MI in 2019.
The South African was instrumental in MI’s title victories in 2019 and 2020, scoring more than 500 runs in both seasons. The Proteas opener had a strong partnership with Rohit Sharma at the top of the order, however he was not retained after the 2021 season.
LSG acquired him at the big auction for Rs. 6.75 crore. MI made a handful of attempts to re-secure the player’s services, but had to withdraw after the 5 crore mark.
Krunal Pandya:
The all-rounder, like Quinton de Kock, was an important piece in MI’s most recent title wins. He was signed by MI for 2 crore during the 2016 auction and made an immediate impression.
Krunal Pandya played a variety of positions during his time with the Mumbai-based organization. From floater to powerplay bowler, he was as versatile as they come. He was also forced to leave MI because they were only allowed to keep four players at the end of the 2021 season.
MI fell out of the running for Krunal in the 2022 auction, as a massive bidding war saw LSG win with a final price of 8.25 crore. He is now captaining the LSG team in the absence of KL Rahul, and he recently won his maiden IPL match as captain.
Daniel Sams:
In IPL 2022, the Australian all-rounder was part of the MI setup. Daniel Sams was a respectable player for the Rohit Sharma-led team in what was perhaps the franchise’s worst season. MI had to beat out LSG for his services, which cost 2.60 crore.
His death bowling abilities came in handy when he famously guided the Mumbai Indians to a victory over the Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Brabourne Stadium, which was also possibly his finest moment in a MI shirt. He was not retained by MI, who opted for a bowling rebuild following a 10th-place result.
After failing to secure the left-arm all-rounder in the 2022 auction, LSG won him in the 2023 mini-auction for a base price of 75 lakh.
Jaydev Unadkat, Krishnappa Gowtham, and Nicholas Pooran are also members of the LSG and have previously represented MI.
