After a couple of day’s rest since winning the Qualifier I at the Wankhede Stadium on May 19, Mumbai Indians went full throttle in their first practice session ahead of Sunday’s Indian Premier League-8 final at the Eden Gardens yesterday
Kieron Pollard
Kolkata: After a couple of day’s rest since winning the Qualifier I at the Wankhede Stadium on May 19, Mumbai Indians went full throttle in their first practice session ahead of Sunday’s Indian Premier League-8 final at the Eden Gardens on Friday.
Kieron Pollard
As always, the pitch provoked interest and inspection because the ones at Kolkata Knight Riders’ ‘home’ have earned a reputation of being rank turners.
‘It’s a sporting wicket’
However, with the home team fallen by the wayside, the signature slow turner may not show up. “There will be runs on it. It’s a sporting wicket,” former India skipper Sourav Ganguly said after a closer look at it.
Ganguly, who is also the Cricket Association of Bengal Joint Secretary, also spent some time in his chamber with MI off-spinner Harbhajan Singh after the veteran spinner made a comeback to the Indian Test team on Wednesday after two years.
Back to the training session, Kieron Pollard, whose 17-ball 41 turned a competitive total into a challenging one at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday, looked eager to keep his rich vein of form. Warming up by facing a stream of local bowlers, the big West Indian was all ready by the time he came to the main nets. Lendl Simmons too had a long session, facing a battery of pace bowlers. Even as fielding coach Jonty Rhodes put players through rigorous fielding drills throughout the three hours, head coach Ricky Pointing and bowling coach Shane Bond were all eyes at the nets.
ADVERTISEMENT
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
