IPL 2021: 3 MI players who need to have a better second half in the UAE

Defending champs Mumbai Indians were average in the first half of IPL 2021. They looked jaded and failed to close out games. MI is placed fourth in the IPL points table with four wins from seven games.

Some of MI's big names are yet to fire. While Rohit Sharma (seven matches, 250 runs) played his part at the top to get his side off to breezy starts, the middle and lower order were inconsistent.

We take a look at three players who will need to have a better second half of the tournament when they resume their title quest on September 19.

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#1 Hardik Pandya - MI's MVP almost every IPL

The Baroda all-rounder did not bowl a single over for MI and managed just 52 runs with the bat in all seven matches he played for the side. The slump continued during India's tour of Sri Lanka in July, where Hardik did not have the outing he would have expected.

However, he is always one knock away from hitting the purple patch and Mumbai will be hoping he comes good for them for the remainder of the tournament.

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#2 Ishan Kishan

The Jharkand wicket-keeper bat had a dismal outing with the bat after being promoted up the order. Kishan managed only 53 runs from the five matches he played in this IPL.

He was the top run-scorer for the Mumbai Indians in the 2020 season, scoring 516 runs at an average of 57.33. He had a good run in the Sri Lanka series as well. He will need to dish out some staggering performances if he hopes to be retained by MI next year.

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#3 Jasprit Bumrah

Another player who had a rather dismal outing in IPL 2021 was Jasprit Bumrah. The seamer had just six wickets to show for in seven games at an economy rate of 7.11.

Bumrah seems to have recaptured his form in India's ongoing tour against England, picking up wickets at a regular pace. He will be hoping to climb up the wickets charts when the tournament resumes.