Nita Ambani, the owner of Mumbai Indians, fondly recalled her first meeting with Hardik and Krunal Pandya over a decade ago during a preparatory camp. Hardik made his debut for Mumbai Indians in 2015 and for India the following year. Since then, his career has been nothing short of extraordinary, but according to Ambani, none of his achievements would have been possible without the Mumbai Indians’ thorough scouting process. Starting as an all-rounder, Hardik’s rise to captain of MI is an inspiration to the next generation of cricketers.

“In the IPL, every team has a fixed budget, so we have a set amount to spend. This meant we had to find new ways to identify talent. I remember personally scouting for players, attending every Ranji Trophy match with my scouts, and visiting domestic cricket games. One day, our scouts brought two young, lanky boys to the camp,” she said.

“I spoke to them, and they told me that for three years, all they’d eaten was Maggi noodles because they had no money. But in them, I saw the spirit, passion, and hunger to succeed. Those two brothers were Hardik Pandya and Krunal Pandya. In 2015, I bought Hardik for just 10,000 US dollars at the auction, and today, he is the proud captain of Mumbai Indians.”

But Ambani’s story with MI doesn’t stop with Hardik. Before him, Mumbai Indians also discovered Jasprit Bumrah. In 2013, a young Bumrah made an unforgettable impact by bowling against Royal Challengers Bangalore, dismissing AB de Villiers, and giving him a memorable send-off. Bumrah, as he has often shared, never bowled with a regular cricket ball during his early days—he mostly used tennis balls and tape balls. To go from that to becoming the world’s top fast bowler is a remarkable journey.

“The next year, our scouts spotted a young cricketer with unusual body language. They told us to watch how he bowled. When we did, we saw that he had an uncanny ability to speak to the ball. That was our Bumrah, and the rest, as they say, is history. Last year, we launched Tilak Varma, and now he’s a proud member of Team India,” Ambani added. “I believe Mumbai Indians truly deserves to be called the nursery of cricket in India.”