“Rohit used to play in the same manner back when he was 15” - Mumbai U19 coach’s massive praise for young IPL 2025 batter

Dinesh Lad, the childhood coach of former Mumbai Indians (MI) captain Rohit Sharma, has praised Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batter Ayush Mhatre for his confidence and positivity as a batter. Lad, who is the currently Mumbai's under-19 coach, also said Mhatre's style of play was similar to Rohit, when the latter was 15 years old.

The 17-year-old made his Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 debut against MI at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday, April 20. He made 32 off 15 balls before falling to Deepak Chahar.

"He is very confident like Rohit and extremely positive as well, which was certainly visible in his knock against MI. Rohit used to play in the same manner back when he was 15 as Ayush is playing right now," Lad told Times of India.

Lad said that he had noted Mhatre's talent when he was 10 years old and praised his punctuality. He added that he had observed a hunger for runs in the teenager, which played a big role in his growth as a player.

"I noted Ayush's talent and fluid stroke play when we first met back when he was 10 years old. He was very particular about coming on time even then, despite travelling from Nala Sopara, which is very far from Mumbai. Another aspect which shines through about Ayush is his hunger to get big runs, which has been a factor behind his rapid growth," he added.

Ayush Mhatre gets praise from MS Dhoni after impressive debut against MI

Despite his short innings on IPL debut, Mhatre left an impression on CSK skipper MS Dhoni for the way he had batted against MI. The 43-year-old praised Mhatre's approach with the bat, saying that it had made things easier for others in the middle and the lower order.

"I think as a youngster he batted really well, and that's the kind of approach that is needed where you play your shots and at the same time you pick your shots that is your strength and I feel right from the start, he went and played his shots and we also haven't seen him much. So, it is a good sign for us at the top of the order that if he can keep playing the shots, it will become slightly easier for the middle and lower order," Dhoni said on Sunday (via Cricbuzz).

CSK, who are currently in tenth place on the points table, next take on Sunrisers Hyderabad in Chennai on Friday, April 25.