Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar backs Mumbai Indians to go the distance in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021, adding that players who will represent the 5-time champions have been in fine form in the international cricket season.
Rohit Sharma will look to become the first captain in the history of the T20 league to complete a hat-trick of title wins as Mumbai Indians are heading into the 14th season on the back of winning the titles in 2020 and 2019.
Despite resuming after a considerably long break in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, Mumbai Indians looked nearly invincible in IPL 2020, which was held in the UAE. As Gavaskar pointed out, Mumbai will begin IPL 2021 as the favorites.
The likes of captain Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan and the Pandya brothers were in good form during the recently-concluded limited-overs series against England. Both Suryakumar and Ishan impressed in their debut series, playing match-winning knocks against the visiting English side.
“I think Mumbai Indians will be hard to beat. We have seen their players coming to form. Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav, the way they batted. Mumbai Indian players who took part in this T20I series and ODI series have shown they are in good form,” Gavaskar told Star Sports.
Hardik Pandya, who had overcome a series of back injuries over the last two years, started bowling consistently for India in the T20I series against England. The all-rounder chipped in with 17 overs and picked up 3 wickets while conceding at a little over 6 runs per over.
“The way Hardik Pandya has come to the party not just for Mumbai Indians, it was important for Indian cricket to see him bowl 9 overs. It means he is ready to play 9 overs. It (the World Test Championship final) is going to be in June, there is still time for that but the way he has come back is very good for Mumbai and Indian cricket,” Gavaskar added.
