Former India batter Aakash Chopra has stated that the void left by the injured Rohit Sharma is costing the Mumbai Indians (MI) in their quest to chase huge totals in the second innings.
This comes after they suffered their biggest ever defeat in the Indian Premier League (IPL) to arch-rivals Chennai Super Kings (CSK), losing by 103 runs.
Rohit was forced to retired out during the game against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru following a hamstring injury and has since missed three matches. Chopra believes that MI are missing the positive, impactful starts that Rohit generally provides, which are useful whilst chasing a target at more than 10 runs-per-over from the very beginning. Without their former captain, the five-time champions have struggled to find a consistent run-scorer with the likes of Suryakumar Yadav and captain Hardik Pandya struggling for confidence.Â
“They have certainly missed Rohit Sharma. Without strong starts, chasing totals in the 210-220 range becomes very difficult. Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya have not contributed enough so far. While there have been positives like Tilak Varma’s hundred, the rest of the batting unit needs to step up. On the bowling side, apart from Jasprit Bumrah, most bowlers have been leaking runs. Ghazanfar has been consistent but needs better support from the rest,” Chopra said on JioStar.
Before leaving the pitch due to injury, Rohit had scored 137 runs from four innings at an average of 45.66 whilst striking at 165. Despite missing the last three games, the right-hander is still his side’s fourth-highest run-scorer this season.Â
Following their defeat to CSK, MI are currently eighth in the standings, having won just two games from their first seven outings. This includes a run of four defeats from five games.Â
The 2020 champions still have time to turn their season around and make a late push to qualify for the playoffs. MI’s next game is once again at the Wankhede Stadium when they take on the Sunrisers Hyderabad on Wednesday, April 29.
