Mumbai Indians (MI) head coach Mahela Jayawardena said his team are keen to persist with their successful pace-heavy attack despite the slowing nature of surfaces in UAE in the second half of the IPL 2020.
Joining two unique overseas pacers, Trent Boult and James Pattinson, with their ace quick Jasprit Bumrah, MI have enjoyed another fine campaign so far, winning five of their seven matches. And with the team hardly looking out of depth in the spin department either, their coach thinks why change something which is working so well.
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“I cannot say that right now because the fast bowlers still have a bigger role to play in this competition – be it in the Powerplay, middle overs and the backend," Jawardena was quoted as saying by PTI before their next game on Friday (October 16) in Abu Dhabi versus Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).
"So, trying to keep that balance as long as they are making contributions, penetrating through the opponent batting line-up, it does not matter what kind of surfaces we play on," he added.
Leg-spinner Rahul Chahar and left-armer Krunal Pandya, also a handy lower-order batsman, have complimented the three pacers brilliantly in the competition. Still, if they see a turning track, they can bolster the spin department by bringing in off-spinner Jayant Yadav, awaiting his opportunities.
“We have got very good spinners, who are operating right now within the playing eleven. There are a few guys who are at the wings, who we might look at giving certain positions and certain match-ups."
"If the conditions suit, we will look into that but right now, I am happy with the combination we have and the way they have operated," stressed Jayawardena.
The coach also said Australian Pattinson had been included in the playing XI ahead of Nathan Coulter-Nile and Mitchell McClenaghan at the insistence of captain Rohit Sharma.
"I have to be honest, there were quite a few names that we discussed but Rohit was the one who put his hand up and said Patto will be someone who will add value to the attack," he said.
“Jimmy hasn’t let us down from the day he arrived. He adapted really well and formed a good partnership with Boulty (Trent Boult) and Boom (Jasprit Bumrah) and these three guys have been good and so far it’s brilliant."
MI currently stand second in the points table and are looking good to go the distance once again. While happy about that, Jawardena also feels it's important for his team not to get complacent at any stage in a tough competition such as this one.
"We have been very consistent, trying to improve on all departments, and playing some consistent cricket. So you can’t complain after seven matches, to be having 12 points and having two losses, one of those being Super Over."
“Overall as a coach I am happy but there are definitely areas we can improve and keep improving because the tournament is always going to get tougher and tougher at the backend," he signed off.
