Mumbai Indians finished ninth in IPL 2026, and Robin Uthappa is their new batting coach
Uthappa played one IPL season for Mumbai Indians, back in 2008. He now takes the batting job under Kieron Pollard, with Mitchell McClenaghan, T Dilip and Dhawal Kulkarni also joining.
Oct 30, 2026
Mumbai Indians have finished rebuilding their back room for IPL 2027, and every new name has been there before. Robin Uthappa is the batting coach. Mitchell McClenaghan takes the bowling, T Dilip the fielding, and Dhawal Kulkarni comes in as development bowling coach. The franchise named all four on 30 October.
They work under Kieron Pollard, who replaced Mahela Jayawardene as head coach on 24 October. Pollard had been MI’s batting coach for the previous four seasons, so Uthappa is taking the job his new boss has just left.
Two days, seven changes
The appointments landed a day after MI let go of bowling coaches Lasith Malinga and Paras Mhambrey and fielding coach Carl Hopkinson. Malinga had joined before IPL 2024. Mhambrey and Hopkinson came in before the 2025 season, Mhambrey on his second spell at the club after an earlier stint there.
Nobody needs telling why. MI finished ninth of ten in IPL 2026, with four wins from 14 games. They were the first side to win five IPL titles, in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020, and have not reached a final in the six seasons since.
Uthappa’s one season in blue
Of the four, Uthappa has the thinnest MI link. He played only the first IPL season for them in 2008 and made 320 runs in 14 matches, striking at just under 115. Then he moved on, through five more franchises, and won the title twice: with Kolkata Knight Riders in 2014 and Chennai Super Kings in 2021. He finished with 4952 runs from 205 IPL games.
McClenaghan’s ties run much deeper. The former New Zealand left-armer played all 56 of his IPL matches for MI and took 71 wickets, a spell from 2015 to 2019 that took in three of their titles. Kulkarni was in the sides that won in 2013 and 2020, across two stints at the club, and played 12 ODIs and two T20Is for India.
Dilip is the only one without an MI playing past. He was India’s fielding coach from late 2021 until August 2026.
Retentions come first
There is not much time to settle in. Franchises have to lodge their retentions and releases by 15 November, and the mini-auction follows in Goa on 16 December.
Hiring people who know the dressing room has obvious upside, and MI have always leaned on family. The worry is the same one that hangs over any club bringing back old faces after a bad year: a ninth-placed side may need someone to tell it uncomfortable things. The first test is whose names are on that release list in a fortnight.