Suryakumar to lead MI in IPL opener vs CSK

Suryakumar Yadav will lead Mumbai Indians in their Indian Premier League (IPL) opener against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Sunday while regular skipper Hardik Pandya serves a one-match ban.

Mumbai’s slow over-rate in their final league game last year was there third offence of the season, which incurred a one-match suspension for Pandya.

“That is out of my control,” all-rounder Pandya told reporters in a pre-tournament press conference in Mumbai on Wednesday.

“We bowled the last over one-and-a-half or two minutes late. At that point I didn’t know the consequences.”

“It is unfortunate, but the rules say it. I will have to go with the process.”

Mumbai are spoilt for choice though when it comes to leadership.

Apart from India Test and one-day captain Rohit Sharma and national T20 skipper Suryakumar, Mumbai also boast pacer Jasprit Bumrah, who has captained in Tests and T20 Internationals.

Bumrah will miss the early part of the league with a back injury he suffered in Australia earlier this year.

“I’m lucky that I have three captains who are playing with me,” all-rounder Pandya said.

“I know that there are three different minds, who have led India in different formats and so many years of experience are always there.”

Mumbai and Chennai are IPL’s two most successful sides having claimed five titles each.

Head coach Mahela Jayawardene said Mumbai had identified the core group and added more experience to bid for a sixth IPL trophy.

“It’s not an easy thing to win an IPL trophy, we all know that, and Mumbai has been successful delivering that,” the former Sri Lanka captain said.

“We have seven guys in our main squad who have won IPL trophies with different franchises.

“As a coach, I’m trying to get that structure in place, get the best out of them, and then add the other elements that we need to add to be a bit more different.”

Indo-Asian News Service