After the thrills of the IPL 2019 final where Lasith Malinga’s final-over heroics won Mumbai Indians the title on the final ball of the match, it will be the quietness of the UAE this year where the IPL will be staged away from the humdrum of a bustling Wankhede Stadium. Malinga, the hero of the final last year, will also be absent – he has pulled out of IPL 2020 for personal reasons. However, with the likes of captain Rohit Sharma, Kieron Pollard, Quinton de Kock, Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah in their midst, Mumbai have a strong chance of claiming a record fifth IPL title.

The acquisition of Chris Lynn, the big-hitter from Australia, who has experience of playing in the UAE unlike some of his teammates, could also be useful.

Key Players

Rohit Sharma

The third-highest scorer in IPL history, Rohit Sharma is the only IPL captain to win the title four times. An opener in international limited-overs cricket, he has been adept at batting at the top of the order as well as in the middle order, given Mumbai’s problem of plenty at the top. He is likely to bat No. 4 this season, too, given Mumbai have Lynn, de Kock, and Suryakumar Yadav as openers in the squad.

IPL Record:

Matches: 188

Runs: 4898

Highest: 109

Centuries: 1

Strike rate: 130.82

Catches: 83

Quinton de Kock

The wicket-keeper batsman from South Africa has played 50 IPL matches and with more than seven years of international cricket behind him, he is a senior member of the squad. Tasked with opening the batting and keeping wickets, de Kock has his task cut out. He forged a good opening partnership with Suryakumar and Rohit last season and was integral to Mumbai’s title win.

IPL Record:

Matches: 50

Runs: 1456

Highest: 108

Centuries: 1

Strike rate: 131.28

Catches: 31

Stumpings: 8

Suryakumar Yadav

The Mumbai-born homegrown talent has paid off big time for Mumbai Indians, too, as in the past two IPL seasons Suryakumar has accumulated nearly 1000 runs at a strike rate of more than 130. He has hit six fifties in the past two seasons and his partnership with de Kock and Rohit at the top of the batting order have been instrumental to Mumbai’s success.

IPL Record:

Matches: 85

Runs: 1548

Highest: 72

Strike rate: 131.96

Catches: 42

Hardik Pandya

A lower-order hitter and a sixth bowler to go to when any of your main bowlers have an off day make Pandya a vital cog in Mumbai’s wheel. A strike rate of 191.42 in IPL 2019 when he smashed 402 runs with more sixes (29) than fours (28) shows how important Pandya has been for Mumbai in recent times. However, the all-rounder is returning from a long injury layoff, which exacerbated after a brief comeback for India last year, and could be rusty.

IPL Record:

Matches: 66

Runs: 1068

Highest: 91

Strike rate: 154.78

Catches: 43

Wickets: 42

Best: 3/20

Econ: 9.06

Jasprit Bumrah

A death-overs bowler who can move the new ball and get wickets up front, too, is doubly-dangerous for the opposition batsmen. Bumrah’s meteoric rise in world cricket started from Mumbai Indians, who launched him as a teenager in 2013. He picked up 19 wickets for Mumbai last season and finished as the team’s top wicket taker.

IPL Record:

Matches: 77

Wickets: 82

Best: 3/7

Economy: 6.63

Promoted

Other members of the squad: Aditya Tare, Anmolpreet Singh, Anukul Roy, Dhawal Kulkarni, Ishan Kishan, Jayant Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Mitchell McClenaghan, Rahul Chahar, Shane Rutherford, Trent Boult, Chris Lynn, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Saurabh Tiwary, Mohsin Khan, Digvijay Deshmukh, Prince Balwant Rai Singh, James Pattinson. 

Note: All stats courtesy iplt20.com.