Mumbai Indians (MI) have dominated the Indian Premier League (IPL) for a long time. From sensational batting performances to on-point bowling effort, to a breathtaking display of fielding, the Mumbai-based franchise has done it all and that too without breaking a sweat. They have lifted the coveted IPL trophy a record four times.
Mumbai Indians have been setting the bar so high, it is nearly impossible for the other teams in the tournament to leapfrog them in every context, on a regular basis.
Here are 5 of the players to watch out from Mumbai Indians:
Hardik Pandya: Hardik Pandya is making a comeback after an injury. His return to the highest level in a series against South Africa was a no-go with the pandemic causing a forced lockdown. He surely is an asset for the Mumbai Indians with his all-round abilities. His records say it all, as he has scored 1068 runs and took 42 wickets in 66 IPL matches. He has a strike-rate of almost 160 which proves very difficult for the opposition to stop him at times.
Chris Lynn: The right-handed opening batsman from Australia, any team would be thrilled to have. Because of his recent decline in form, KKR released him. Mumbai Indians bagged him for a bargain of Rs 2 crore which could turn out to be an excellent buy if the Australian clicks. He has scored 1280 runs in the 41 matches he has played in the league at an modest average of 34 and strike rate of 141.
Rahul Chahar: Mumbai Indians picked Rahul Chahar in 2018 auction, since then he has been produced some brilliant performances for the team. He was a big part of MI’s success last season. He made his IPL debut in 2017 with Rising Pune Supergiant but it was only with MI that he shot into the limelight.
MI backed Chahar to come good and he didn’t disappoint. His records say it all as he took 13 wickets from as many games and had an economy of 6.55 in the 2019 season. He became a regular in India ‘A’ after that season and even made his T20I debut for India.
Quinton De Kock: MI bagged Quinton De Kock last year. Barring 2016, when he scored 445 runs in the season for Delhi, rest of the seasons were not that fruitful for him. He had not lived up to expectation. However, things were different last season.
The South African left-handed wicket-keeper batsman got the license from the MI team management to attack at the top of the order with Rohit Sharma playing his game at the other end. It brought the best out of him as he topped the batting charts for MI in 2019, scoring 529 runs in the season. Even this year, he’s been in fabulous form and has been South Africa’s best batsman across formats.
Surya Kumar Yadav: Surya Kumar Yadav made his IPL debut in 2012, since then he is quietly making his name in the circuit. Before Mumbai Indians, he was with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for four seasons (2014-17) but he batted down the order.
However, ever since Yadav has joined MI, he has been batting in the top-order. In the last two seasons, the Mumbai batsman has scored 936 runs at an average of 34.67. He’s become a vital member of the playing XI and once he gets going, Yadav can turn on the heat and get substantial scores. Having scored 400+ runs in both seasons, Yadav will be striving to continue to good form and inch closer to an India call-up as well.