New Delhi: Mumbai Indians stand-in captain Suryakumar Yadav will miss Thursday’s match against Kings XI Punjab in Dharamsala due to personal reasons. It is understood that the right-hander has decided not to travel and has communicated his decision to the team management before the next game.
The five-time Indian Cricket League champions will now miss not only their regular captain Hardik Pandya but also stand-in captain Suryakumar.
TimesofIndia.com has confirmed that Jasprit Bumrah will lead Mumbai Indians in this match. Considering MI have already been eliminated from the playoffs and the game is effectively a dead end for the five-time champions, the team may opt to rest Bumrah. However, the absence of Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav means that Bumrah will not only have to play but also captain the team.
Interestingly, this will be the first time Bumrah will captain Mumbai Indians, making him the tenth captain of the franchise.
Tilak Varma could have been one of the captain’s options but his priority now is getting the bat right as he has not been able to make the most of his opportunities this season. Apart from one hundred and fifty half-centuries, his returns were far from ideal. He hopes to end the season on a high note by making an impactful contribution in the final three games.
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After the match against Kings XI Punjab, Mumbai Indians are scheduled to play two more games. All eyes will now be on the availability of the regular and alternate captains in the remaining two games. Suryakumar is out of form and would be better off using the remaining games to regain his confidence. As far as Hardik is concerned, the official news remains that he is recovering from a back injury, but the all-rounder continues to train away from the crowd in Mumbai.
Rohit Sharma update: He is not 100% fit yet and has not been cleared by the Mumbai Indians medical team to play. Will continue to bat with the coaching staff and watch how the boundary ropes progress.
