Onus on seniors as Mumbai Indians seek first victory
PUNE: Struggling to survive in the IPL 2022 after yet another false start to their campaign, the Mumbai Indians (MI) will look to their senior, iconic players to finally come to the party when they take on the dangerous Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the MCA Stadium here at Gahunje on Wednesday.
A nightmarish start has seen MI slip to last on the table, just a rung below CSK. PBKS, on the other hand, have been inconsistent, having won two and lost two. For a change, Punjab go in as the favourites against the five-time champs.
In order to salvage their tournament, MI would be desperate to reverse this trend of defeats soon. They can seek inspiration from the past: They began IPL-2014 with five successive losses, but reached the playoffs. In IPL-2015, they started off with four defeats, but went on to win the title.
However, that's history. On the eve of MI's fifth game in IPL-2022, ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah wants to focus on the present. He promised that MI would "keep fighting and finding a way."
And for that to happen, two of their biggest match-winners - skipper Rohit Sharma (80 runs to show in four games @20.00) and big-hitter Keiron Pollard (47 runs in four games@15.66), who've both been off-colour, must put their hands up and rise to the occasion.
MI's bowling woes are hurting them. With Trent Boult and Rahul Chahar gone, too much load has fallen on the shoulders of ace pacer Bumrah. Both the foreign left-arm pace recruits Daniel Sams (139 runs in 11 overs, one wicket, Econ rate 12.63) and Tymal Mills (99 runs in 10 overs, six wickets, Econ rate 9.90) have been cannon fodder for the batsmen Murugan Ashwin has been decent, but MI are a quality spinner short.
Rahul Chahar, now playing for Punjab Kings having been released by Mumbai, would be extra motivated for this clash.
