04 May,2026 09:35 AM IST | Mumbai | Subodh Mayure
MI’s Suryakumar Yadav. Pics/IPL
Mumbai Indians (MI) are always known to be playing for top honours, but that's not the case for the five-time champions this season.
With their Playoff hopes all but over after just two wins in nine games, MI, who are placed ninth, will be playing for pride now besides hoping and praying that some of the other results go their way too.
Having lost four consecutive games at the Wankhede, their most in a season, the Hardik Pandya-led side will have a good opportunity to seek a turnaround against bottom-placed Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and give the home fans something to cheer for tonight. But can the hosts post a huge total or chase a 240-plus score, given their batting struggles?
Tilak Varma (193 runs), Suryakumar Yadav (183), Pandya (146), who are known for single-handedly winning matches, are out of form. Opener Ryan Rickelton (297 runs) and middle-order batter Naman Dhir (233) are the only batters with 200-plus runs this season.
MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene is hopeful that Suryakumar will find his rhythm soon. "If he [Suryakumar] gets a few scores together, I think he will find that rhythm. I think sometimes when things are not going your way, it doesn't fall in place," Jayawardene said after MI's eight-wicket loss to Chennai Super Kings on Saturday.
Jayawardene felt that some of Suryakumar's well-timed shots have been caught at the boundary. "He's definitely up for it, he's in a good space. It's just that it hasn't worked like the amount of times he's got caught on the boundary this season. I think he himself is disappointed, but [he] just has to keep working harder," he added.
MI players opted to rest on Sunday after their defeat to CSK in Chennai on Saturday. However, Rohit Sharma (137 runs), who last played against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, scoring 19 before retiring hurt on April 12 at Wankhede, enjoyed his batting at Wankhede on Sunday. Unlike routine net sessions, he had match-like situations, keeping the off-side open. Rohit batted for half an hour with fielders at short third, point, cover, extra-cover, mid-off and long-off, facing left-arm pacers and spinners while trying to find gaps. Occasionally, he also smashed a few over the bowler's head for maximums.
Even defending a decent total seems to be a big challenge for MI's struggling bowling attack led by star pacer Jasprit Bumrah. Off-spinner AM Ghazanfar (11 wickets) is the only MI bowler with more than 10 wickets this season. The next most successful bowlers for MI are pacers Ashwani Kumar and Shardul Thakur, with six scalps each.
20.33
Suryakumar Yadav's strike-rate this season - his lowest since the 2017 edition
2-6
MI's win-loss record against LSG
