IPL 2021: [Watch] Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya and Krunal Pandya join Mumbai Indians
A day after India’s victory over England in the final ODI in Pune, the Mumbai Indians trio of Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya and Krunal Pandya have joined their IPL franchise.
All three cricketers were part of the Indian squad for the England series. While Yadav made his international debut in the T20Is, Krunal made a teary-eyed ODI debut in the first match of the three-game series.
Mumbai Indians took to their official Instagram account and posted a video of the trio checking into the Renaissance hotel. In the clip, all three cricketers are seen posing for the camera, with the Pandya brothers flashing the victory sign.
Yadav, reflecting on his international debut, commented:
“Really happy and very proud also to represent India. It has always been my dream to play for my country, obviously. And, it feels really great. I was really happy to part of that amazing unit. And now that the role is over, I am back to my family. Really happy and excited. Looking forward to unbelievable times ahead.”
Mumbai Indians captioned the video:
“Pune ➡ Mumbai and our boys have arrived at the @renaissancemum!”
Mumbai Indians are the defending champions in the IPL and the most successful franchise in the history of the T20 league. They have won the tournament five times, including the last two in succession.
MI will kick off IPL 2021 with the tournament opener against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on April 9 in Chennai.
Mumbai Indians players were impressive against England
Players from Mumbai Indians made a massive impact in the series against England. It was MI skipper Rohit Sharma’s 161 in the Chennai Test that swung the momentum of the Test series after India were hammered in the opening Test match.
Ishan Kishan made a memorable debut in the T20Is, smashing an impressive half-century on debut. He was, in fact, named Man of the Match for his fearless innings.
Furthermore, while Yadav did not get to bat on his T20I debut, the first ball he faced in international cricket, from Jofra Archer, was launched into the stands. He too went on to register a match-winning half-century in his first international innings. Yadav followed it up with a sprightly 32 in the next game.
Even young leggie Rahul Chahar came in and delivered. With Yuzvendra Chahal proving ineffective, Chahar was brought into the team for the 4th T20I. He made a mark with figures of 2 for 35, dismissing Dawid Malan and Jonny Bairstow.