IPL 2019: Best Mumbai Indians XI from the list of retained players

# 8,9,10 - 3 Indian Top Order Batsmen- Surya Kumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma

Alternate pick – Siddhesh Lad/Aditya Tare

Though every cricket lover would love to see Rohit Sharma at the top of the order as an opener, Mumbai Indians will most probably continue their policy of keeping the hitman back as a Number 4 player. Suryakumar Yadav can be expected to open the innings and the young Ishan Kishan will take up the Number 3 mantle in the squad.

What is interesting to see is that in Sidhesh Lad and Aditya Tare, Mumbai does have backups as a batsman and a wicketkeeper. But with 7 slots available, Mumbai Indians will definitely fancy their chances to grab a few Indian batsmen to cover any eventualities. It goes without saying that Rohit Sharma is irreplaceable in the squad and it is quite impossible to plan for a scenario where Rohith is unable to play.

Most possible options that Mumbai Indians will fancy could be Sachin Baby (released by SunrisersHyderabad)Sarfraz Khan (released by RCB). Mumbai might also pick an unknown player into their fold and mentor him to take up the responsibility in the years to come. There is also an outside chance that Mumbai might pick Yuvraj Singh, but the possibility seems a bit far-fetched.

Whoever the backups are, don’t expect them to get into the playing XI in the first few matches. Mumbai Indians will definitely go with the time-tested Indian top order of Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, and Rohit Sharma to win them the IPL 2019 trophy.