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Mumbai Indians owner Nita Ambani recalls how she scouted for new talent for the Mumbai Indians team and included Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, and Tilak Varma in the team.
Nita Ambani recalls how she scouted Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah for Mumbai Indians. (Picture Credit: Sportzpics)
Indian Premier League franchise Mumbai Indians owner Nita Ambani, during her recent trip to Boston in the USA, opened up about how the Mumbai-based franchise scouted for talents like the Pandya brothers (Hardik and Krunal), Jasprit Bumrah, and Tilak Varma. According to Nita Ambani, she used to go for every Ranji Trophy match to scout for the talent, and that’s where she noticed Hardik and Bumrah, who in the last 10 years have won multiple matches for the Mumbai Indians and played a big role in the team’s five IPL title wins.
“We all have a fixed budget. So every team can spend X amount of money. So, we had to think about new ways of getting talent. I mean, we couldn’t only get the big names. So that’s when I thought that we should encourage new talent in Mumbai Indians,” Nita Ambani said in a video shared by ANI.
“So, I remember scouting for talent, and I used to go for every Ranji Trophy match where there were just two crows sitting in the audience. And, you know, my scouts and me would go to all these domestic cricket matches. And one day, our scouts got two young, lanky, thin boys to the camp. I was talking to them, and they said that for three years, they’ve eaten nothing but Maggi noodles because they’ve had no money. But in them, I saw the spirit, the passion, and the hunger that they wanted to make it big. Those two brothers were Hardik and Krunal Pandya.”
“In 2015, I bought Hardik Pandya for 10,000 US dollars in the auction. And today, he’s the proud captain of the Mumbai Indians,” she added.
#WATCH | Boston, US: Reliance Foundation Founder-Chairperson Nita Ambani tells how she scouted for new talent for the Mumbai Indians team and included Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah and Tilak Varma in the teamShe says, “In IPL, we all have a fixed budget, so every… pic.twitter.com/v0HriPJH8T
— ANI (@ANI) February 17, 2025
Since making his debut in the cash-rich league in the 2015 season, Hardik has played 137 matches and has 2525 runs and 64 wickets to his name. Hardik’s elder brother Krunal made his IPL debut in the 2016 season and has scored 1647 runs in 127 matches in addition to taking up 76 wickets.
“The next year, our scouts got in one young cricketer with odd body language, and they say, ‘Watch him bowl.’ We watched him. He could just speak to the ball. Another legend, Lasith Malinga, and me, both were watching him. And he said, ‘Mrs. Ambani, you need to watch out for him.’ That was our (Jasprit) Bumrah. And they say, the rest is history. This year, last year, we launched Tilak Verma, and now he’s a proud member of Team India. So, I think Mumbai Indians is rightfully called the nursery of cricket in India,” Nita Ambani said.
