Mumbai Indians have had an extremely disappointing IPL season, with only three wins in 13 games. The five-time IPL champions are currently languishing at the bottom of the points tally with six points. The richest and most successful side in IPL history may have endured a forgettable spell but the team looks to cap off the tournament on a winning note on Saturday. IPL 2022 Full Coverage
Mumbai will play for pride against Delhi Capitals, who will be chasing two crucial points to achieve a top-four finish with eight wins in 14 matches. The focus also remains on Arjun, the son of legendary Sachin Tendulkar, amid reports of him making his debut for the final league-stage fixture of the Mumbai outfit.
Arjun, a left-arm medium-pacer, was bought by Mumbai for ₹30 lakh during the accelerated part of the February auction. He even took to Instagram to share visuals of him bowling to MI batters in the nets. Pundits and fans have backed the youngster to play his first-ever IPL game but former India batter Mohammad Kaif believes the franchise would have played him earlier if he was ready for the IPL challenge.
“If MI felt Arjun Tendulkar was ready, they would have played him by now. I think they feel he still needs to work on his game. Why would a captain wait till the last game to try out a player? If he was good enough, he would have already been in the playing XI. I don’t think Rohit Sharma is a captain who would try out a player just because it is the last match. MI would want to go with their best combination and try to win this game," Kaif told Sportskeeda before the MI-DC game.
{{/usCountry}}“If MI felt Arjun Tendulkar was ready, they would have played him by now. I think they feel he still needs to work on his game. Why would a captain wait till the last game to try out a player? If he was good enough, he would have already been in the playing XI. I don’t think Rohit Sharma is a captain who would try out a player just because it is the last match. MI would want to go with their best combination and try to win this game," Kaif told Sportskeeda before the MI-DC game.
{{/usCountry}}Former India coach Ravi Shastri, on the other hand, backed Arjun to get an opportunity in the 'dead rubber'. Arjun has also served as a net bowler for the Indian team.
“Why not? I have seen him in the nets. The Tendulkar name is a big name and he has very big boots to fill. But he bowls ‘theek thaak’ (decent), swings the new ball into the batters and is tall so gets the bounce too. So why not? If they have lost 11 matches then why does it matter? If they give Arjun a chance and if he does well in his first match it’s good for the future," he told ESPNCricnifo.
Earlier, Rohit said the team is looking to try out as many players as possible before concluding the mediocre season. "We will try everything we can from our side to put our best foot forward in the last game. If there is an opportunity to try out some more guys, we will look to do that too," said Rohit after MI suffered their 10th defeat of the ongoing season after losing to Sunrisers Hyderabad on Tuesday.
Mumbai Indians so far have given chances to many players like Tim David, Ramandeep Singh, Sanjay Yadav and Mayank Markande. Until now, 22 players have played in 13 games but it remains to be seen if Arjun gets a game after having warmed the bench for 27 straight games across two seasons.