The five-time champion Mumbai Indians went shopping following a disastrous 15th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and acquired players like Cameron Green, Jhye Richardson, Piyush Chawla, and Shams Mulani among many others ahead of the upcoming campaign. While the team made the decision to release a few top players like Jaydev Unadkat, Daniel Sams, and Fabian Allen among many others, their ever-reliable all-rounder Kieron Pollard announced his retirement from the lucrative competition.
As a result, the Rohit Sharma-led club has undergone significant roster changes and now appears to be a team that can contend for the championship. They currently have many high-quality options and a number of players who have the potential to completely alter the course of the game. Unfortunately, not all players will have an opportunity to excel in the competition. In the upcoming season, a certain number of players will be seen wearing the Mumbai shirt because the team doesn’t like to chop and replace its starting Lineup. Conversely, other players will need to wait for their chance.
5. Mohammed Arshad Khan
Mohammad Arshad Khan, 25, is very unlikely to be given a chance in the starting Eleven because to the abundance of excellent pacers in the Mumbai Indians setup. The cricketer most recently competed for Madhya Pradesh in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, taking three wickets in as many games. He scored 40 runs with the bat, but it is insufficient for an all-rounder.
He was purchased by the franchise during the IPL auction in 2022, but he never had an opportunity to perform. Yet, the all-around player was kept, all the more so since Jaydev Unadkat’s release by the team management. He can provide value and dynamics to the team as a left-arm pacer but is extremely unlikely to make his debut.
He will primarily be used to coach Mumbai’s batsmen. The cricketers can employ the captain Rohit Sharma to coach them to be experts in this area because he and many other hitters frequently struggle against left-arm pacers.
4. Vishnu Vinod
The Mumbai Indians’ pecking order places Vishnu Vinod third. The best candidate for the wicket-keeping position is Ishan Kishan, with Tristan Stubbs serving as a backup. As a result, despite consistently performing admirably in the home tournament, Vishnu might spend the entire campaign warming the bench.
The 29-year-old has participated in 50 T20 games and has 1191 runs at a strike rate of 138.81. In the first three games of the Indian Premier League, he only appeared, scoring 19 runs.
He performed very subparly in the most recent Vijay Hazare Trophy competition, thus it will be challenging for him to advance. Vinod can become an impact player if he can succeed in the nets, but it also seems extremely doubtful considering Mumbai’s depth on the bench.
3. Arjun Tendulkar
Arjun Tendulkar has been a part of the Mumbai-based team for a while but has yet to play in the Indian Premier League. It was anticipated that the franchise would give Arjun his first shot during the previous edition when the Rohit Sharma-led team was playing awful cricket, but that never happened.
As Mumbai’s bowling order has greatly improved this year, it is quite doubtful that the team will give the 23-year-old his big break. Before making his debut for Goa in 2022, the young player decided to train under Yograj Singh after not receiving enough opportunity to play domestic cricket for Mumbai.
Although he has performed admirably in domestic cricket thus far, it is not convincing enough for the batsman to be given the chance to make his IPL debut. Arjun has notable T20 experience, having participated in nine games and taking 12 wickets at an economy rate of 6.60.
2. Tristan Stubbs
In the most recent IPL, the rising phenom Tristan Stubbs took the role of English bowler Tymal Mills. Even though he was kept, the 22-year-old can only be seen warming the bench for the whole of the competition because he only had a few opportunities to establish himself and failed miserably.
Yet, he continues to be a promising potential, which is why Mumbai invested because of him. The cricketer is participating in the current SA20 league, so it will be interesting to watch how he does because his performance could have an impact on whether he plays in the Indian Premier League in the future.
The South Africa international has a total of 41 T20 games under his belt and has amassed 838 runs with a strike rate of 155.76. He enjoys playing an aggressive style of cricket, which might increase his chances of being given a chance in the IPL, but for now he is quite far down the food chain.
1. Dewald Brevis
Dewald Brevis, also referred to as “Baby AB,” has the ability to decide a game in the shortest format. The cricketer, like Stubbs, favours an aggressive style of play, but so far in the Indian Premier League, it hasn’t worked in his favour.
At the IPL auction 2022, the Mumbai-based franchise paid INR 3 crore for the batter. During his seven games played during the season, he amassed 161 runs at a strike rate of 142.48. Now, despite playing with a respectable strike rate, Brevis’ consistency is a subject of concern and thus, he might have to warm the bench in the future season.
According to the current situation, the five-time champions will probably start Cameron Green, Jofra Archer, Tim David, and either Jhye Richardson or Jason Behrendorff as their four foreign players. Brevis or other international players may thus need to perform extraordinarily well in order to make the team.
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