Five-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Mumbai Indians are already starting to the backfoot with their star batter Suryakumar Yadav yet to join the side’s team bubble. It is now almost certain that Yadav will miss the side’s opening fixture against Delhi Capitals on Sunday (March 27). 


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Skipper Rohit Sharma revealed that Ishan Kishan, MI’s costliest buy at Rs 15.25 crore in the IPL 2022 mega auction, will be his opening partner at the start of the league. “I’m looking forward to open with Ishan Kishan. Surya is at NCA. We are waiting for him to join us, once we get the clearance from NCA,” Rohit Sharma said during a virtual media conference on Wednesday (March 23). 



Head coach Mahela Jayawardene was excited about Ishan opening the innings with Rohit. “I think Rohit and Ishan is a good combination up top and Ishan is also a WK, and there are very few who can bat in the top-3,” Jayawardene said. 


The 31-year-old Suryakumar picked up a hairline fracture during the limited-overs series against West Indies and then missed the subsequent T20 series against Sri Lanka. 


Hyderabad batter Tilak Verma is favourite to take the No. 3 position in the absence of Suryakumar Yadav. “Tilak is a massive talent, he has a lot of potential. It is about learning for him and we will try nurture all the young guys in the team,” former Sri Lanka captain and MI head coach Jayawardene said. 


Some of the other IPL franchises have expressed their displeasure that all the league games of IPL 2022 will be held in Maharasthra which gives homeground advantage to MI. 


“It’s a new team, I don’t believe in added advantage, 70-80 per cent of the squad hasn’t played in Mumbai before,” Rohit said. 


“We will create our own plans and we are excited to have all these new bowlers who have brilliant skill sets,” Jayawardene added.