Punjab Kings had to make a major change in their Indian Premier League 2021 match against Mumbai Indians on Tuesday - with opener Mayank Agarwal being left out of the playing XI. The match between the two teams is a must-win for both the teams as they are currently placed at the bottom half of the table.
After MI captain Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to bowl, PBKS skipper KL Rahul quizzed about his playing XI and he revealed Mandeep Singh has replaced Mayank Agarwal, and he explained the reasons behind the change.
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"Just one change: Mayank has a stiff back and so he misses out. Mandeep Singh comes in," Rahul said.
Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra, on Star Sports, said that while Mayank's absence is a huge loss, it may work for PBKS.
"Huge loss. when you talk about KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal - they have put together five 100-run partnerships already. Mayank should be thefirst name on teamsheet only after Rahul," Chopra said.
"He will be missed. But maybe Chris Gayle will open. Mandeep has replaced Mayank, but I don't see him opening. If you got Gayle, you got to have him open. So, it may work out for PBKS in some way," Chopra said.
{{/usCountry}}"He will be missed. But maybe Chris Gayle will open. Mandeep has replaced Mayank, but I don't see him opening. If you got Gayle, you got to have him open. So, it may work out for PBKS in some way," Chopra said.
{{/usCountry}}Punjab Kings (Playing XI): KL Rahul(w/c), Mandeep Singh, Chris Gayle, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Deepak Hooda, Harpreet Brar, Nathan Ellis, Mohammed Shami, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh
Mumbai Indians (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma(c), Quinton de Kock(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Saurabh Tiwary, Krunal Pandya, Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Rahul Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult