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IPL 2019 is less than a week away and the anticipation for the best T20 League in the world is increasing day by day. The 2019 edition of the Indian Premier League promises to be another entertaining ride.
Mumbai Indians are one of the best teams in the IPL and they ended last year in the fifth position in the points table. This year, skipper Rohit Sharma will be looking for a better finish.
MI have great balance in their side and they seem to have all the bases covered. Jasprit Bumrah and Mayank Markande lead the way in the bowling department, while skipper Rohit Sharma leads the way in the batting department.
Their opening combination has the potential to be the best in the tournament. The likes of Quinton de Kock, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Evin Lewis, and Ishan Kishan, all can open the batting. Last year, Yadav and Lewis opened for most of the games and what happens this year will be interesting to see.
So, without further ado, here are the five opening combinations that Mumbai Indians can opt to play with:
#5 Suryakumar Yadav and Quinton de Kock
Suryakumar Yadav and Quinton de Kock can open the batting for Mumbai Indians. De Kock is considered as one of the best opening batsmen in world cricket at the moment and there is no doubt on where he should bat if he plays. Although Suryakumar prefers to play in the middle order, he was absolutely brilliant as an opener for MI last year.
This combination is not going to be the go-to for MI as both de Kock and Yadav are attacking batsmen by nature. Also, Yadav naturally prefers to play in the middle order as he has done for Mumbai in the domestic circuit. That is why this combination is 5th in this list.
#4 Quinton de Kock and Evin Lewis
Quinton and Lewis can form a destructive opening combination at the top for MI. Also, this combination allows MI to play with Rohit Sharma at number 3 and Suryakumar Yadav at number 4. De Kock and Lewis are both very attacking in nature and can make the most of the first 6 overs.
But, if MI opt to go with this pair, they won't be able to play Kieron Pollard and Ben Cutting together as they did last year. This is because, MI always goes with one overseas fast bowler and Jasprit Bumrah, and that is why this combination is 4th on the list.
#3 Suryakumar Yadav and Evin Lewis
Yadav and Lewis was the opening partnership for MI last year and they can be this year as well. They provided MI with quick starts, but they just couldn't stitch big partnerships at the top of the innings. Also, Yadav and Lewis had a tendency to get set and throw their wicket away, which didn't help MI as they lost momentum going into the middle overs.
With fans calling for Rohit Sharma to open the batting, this pair is not the most likely, but MI fans can still see this pair open the batting against the Delhi Capitals at the Wankhede Stadium in their first match.
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#2 Rohit Sharma and Evin Lewis
MI tried this opening pair last year for a couple of matches and then they decided to open with Yadav and Lewis, pushing Rohit down the order in the process. There is no doubt as to where Rohit should bat, the Indian vice-captain is a match-winner at the top of the order and should open the batting.
This pair can really be great as Lewis can go hard at the balling in the first couple of overs, allowing Rohit to build an innings in his typical style.
#1 Quinton de Kock and Rohit Sharma
This opening combination is a dream for cricketing fans as both these players are considered as one of the best opening batsmen in the world at the moment. This pair has the potential to be the best in IPL 2019.
Both de Kock and Rohit love to play long innings and that can really come handy for Mumbai Indians.
De Kock is the more attacking batsman and he can give Rohit the time he always needs to get in grips with the wicket. Also, de Kock is the form of his life and these two are clearly MI's best batsmen, and there's a saying that your best batsmen should always play the most overs.
