Suryakumar Yadav Can Bat At No.3 Permanently For Mumbai Indians, Says Virender Sehwag

Five-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Mumbai Indians (MI) are gearing up to take on Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in their final league match of IPL 2023 in Lucknow on Tuesday. Rohit Sharma’s Mumbai Indians will need to win both their remaining matches to seal their entry into the playoff stage.

MI will depend on in-form batsman Suryakumar Yadav as they face LSG on a sluggish Lucknow pitch. ‘SKY’ has hit a golden patch and is the highest run-getter for MI in IPL 2023 with 479 runs in 12 matches.

MI have gathered steam in the second half of IPL 2023 and their juggernaut continues. The Rohit Sharma-led side have won four of their last five matches and will be aiming to pick up two crucial points in Lucknow on Tuesday night.

Former India cricketer Virender Sehwag has backed star MI batsman Suryakumar Yadav to be the permanent batsman at number three because of his brilliance against pace and spin. Speaking on Star Sports’ Cricket Live, Virender Sehwag said, “SKY can be the permanent number 3 for Mumbai Indians as he is a good player of pace and spin. Although it all depends on the team management (when it comes to taking such decisions), but I firmly believe that he should have faced more balls.”

always live ______#a family #mumbaimarijaan #mumbaiindians #IPL2023 #TATAIPL @surya_14kumar mi tv pic.twitter.com/kN8kuE5RhX– Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) May 15, 2023

Former India off-spinner and MI captain Harbhajan Singh believes Mumbai Indians could well finish in the top two at the end of the league stage and give themselves an extra shot to lift their sixth IPL trophy.

“Mumbai Indians have proved once again, this is a champion side and it knows how to come back strongly. People weren’t counting this MI out after losing the first leg of the competition, but once it got back on the winning track, there was no stopping the side. It can also end the league stage in the top two. If Mumbai Indians win the remaining two games, they will have 18 points. GT already has 18 points and except Mumbai Indians no other team will be able to get 18 points now,” Harbhajan Singh said on Star Sports’ Cricket Live.

Meanwhile, India’s young batting sensation Shubman Gill continued to raise his stock in IPL 2023 by smashing his maiden century in the competition. The 22-year-old Gujarat Titans opener has been in tremendous form in the current season and has impressed former India cricketer Harbhajan Singh with the variety of shots he has in his batting repertoire.

The specialty of Shubman Gill is that he has all kinds of shots and he chooses his shots according to the situation. Shubman plays pure cricketing shots when he is in his rhythm and this is a testimony to how strong his batting coaching has been. He doesn’t play shots without thinking. Great feeling to watch Shubman’s straight dives and pull shots,” Harbhajan said about Shubman Gill.