"MI won't be able to win unless Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan score big runs" - Aakash Chopra
Former India batter Aakash Chopra has stated that it is important for Mumbai Indians (MI) openers Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan to score runs at the top if they want to win matches. He feels that the IPL team will continue to lose if there's no valuable contribution from these two.
Speaking on his YouTube channel ahead of the Lucknow Super Giants' (LSG) clash against MI, Chopra mentioned that conditions at the Wankhede Stadium will be favorable for batters. He pointed out how the likes of Jos Buttler have taken the opposition bowlers to the cleaners at the venue in IPL 2022.
He said:
"MI won't be able to win unless the likes of Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan score big runs. As openers, you have 20 overs with you and these are good batting conditions. Jos Buttler has slammed three hundreds so far in IPL 2022 and he has done well at this venue too. And it's not just him, everyone else has performed well with the bat so you are bound to have expectations from Rohit and Ishan."
Chopra suggested that Mumbai are struggling to get their balance right this season. He also highlighted how seasoned campaigner Kieron Pollard is yet to fire with the bat. He added:
"Dewald Brevis bats at No. 3and he did well against LSG in their previous clash. Suryakumar Yadav has been playing well, but what can he do alone? Kieron Pollard isn't scoring at all. Their balance is completely off. They have 6 batters out of which nobody bowls, except Pollard and Tilak Varma. Hrithik Shokeen did bat well in the last match but I found his bowling to be just okay."
MI have lost their first seven matches in this year's cash-rich league and have struggled to get going. The five-time champions will now be looking to salvage their pride by coming up with improved performances in the second half of the tournament.
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"Nobody expected MI to lose all of their first 7 matches" - Aakash Chopra
The cricketer-turned-commentator stated that while he had predicted that MI might not make it to the playoffs, he didn't expect them to start in such dismal fashion. He added that the five-time champions' losing streak this season has taken him by surprise.
Chopra stated:
"Nobody expected Mumbai Indians to lose all of their first 7 matches in IPL 2022. I might have said that they would not qualify, but losing 7 out of 7 is not possible. But it has happened and that too with the most successful team. All strange things have happened."
MI will be seen in action later today when they take on LSG in the 37th league match of the season. According to the IPL schedule 2022, the match will be played at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.