Mumbai Indians appoint Zubin Bharucha as Director of Performance
Bharucha joins Mumbai Indians after 17 years with Rajasthan Royals
Mumbai Indians have appointed Zubin Bharucha as the franchise’s new Director of Performance, bringing in a veteran cricket administrator credited with helping develop several of Rajasthan Royals’ leading young Indian players.
The 56-year-old former first-class cricketer will work alongside head coach Mahela Jayawardene and Mumbai Indians’ existing coaching and support staff. His responsibilities will include overseeing the team’s off-season performance programme and working with the franchise’s multidisciplinary leadership group across its wider cricket ecosystem.
“Zubin Bharucha joins Mumbai Indians as Director of Performance and will work closely with the existing multi-disciplinary leadership group across all performance disciplines within the MI ecosystem,” Mumbai Indians said in a statement.
The franchise added that Bharucha would “build on Mumbai Indians’ established approach to delivering sustained excellence in player development.”
A long association with Rajasthan Royals
Bharucha spent much of his professional career with Rajasthan Royals. He served as the team’s director from 2008 until the franchise’s two-year suspension, later returning as Director of Cricket Operations and High Performance from 2018 to 2025. His senior roles with the Royals also included Head of Cricket.
His work in Rajasthan’s player-development structure was associated with the emergence of Indian talents including Sanju Samson, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. Before moving into coaching and cricket administration, Bharucha represented Mumbai and Surrey in first-class cricket.
Mumbai Indians target a turnaround
Bharucha arrives as Mumbai Indians seek to revive their fortunes. The franchise has won the IPL five times but has not lifted the trophy since 2020. Since that title, Mumbai have reached the playoffs only twice, with their recent record also featuring two last-place finishes and one ninth-place finish.
His appointment strengthens a performance-focused structure designed to improve player development and help the franchise return to sustained success.