IPL 2021: 'Mumbai Indians can drop Suryakumar Yadav against Delhi Capitals' - Sanjay Manjrekar

Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar feels that Mumbai Indians (MI) can drop Suryakumar Yadav against Delhi Capitals. Yadav has looked completely off-colour and has managed to score just 35 runs in the last six innings. Manjrekar said MI will be in dilemma to stick with Yadav in a must-win game or drop him like SRH did with Warner.

“When we were talking about MI’s out-of-form batsmen, we were taking names like Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya. Suryakumar Yadav wasn’t scoring the runs but we were saying that he would eventually find form. However, the way he was dismissed in the last game is surely a cause for concern for MI. This is a big game for MI and they can see it in two ways. Since it is a big game, they can show trust in Suryakumar Yadav that he will find form, or they can completely drop him like the way SRH dropped Warner for Jason Roy.”

Not only Suryakumar Yadav but other batters, including Rohit Sharma, Quinton de Kock have been ordinary as well. However, MI will be pleased to see Hardik Pandya get some runs in the last game against Punjab Kings.

Manjrekar also said that if Prithvi Shaw is unfit, Delhi Capitals should open with Steve Smith against MI. Smith replace Shaw in the last game and scored a solid 39. While Smith’s strike rate is a concern, Manjrekar feels he can be an asset against MI spinners on a sluggish Sharjah wicket.

“The game is in Sharjah where the ball is turning and you need to be good against spin. In the last game, Steve Smith played really well and looked one of the better DC batsmen. He made the least errors and so his playing is important if Shaw is unfit,” Sanjay Manjrekar concluded.

MI are in a tricky position where a single loss will get their campaign in jeopardy. The Rohit Sharma-led side need to win all games to give themselves a fair chance to qualify. DC, on the other hand, have one foot in the playoffs and a win will make them join CSK in the playoffs.