IPL 2021: Sanjay Manjrekar picks 5 players from each team to watch out for in MI-KKR game

Former Indian cricketer-turned commentator Sanjay Manjrekar has picked five players from each team to watch out for in the Mumbai Indians (MI)'s IPL 2021 game against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Thursday.

Previewing the game for Dafa news on Instagram, Manjrekar picked MI captain Rohit Sharma. opener Quinton de Kock and all-rounder Kieron Pollard. The former player also picked the pace-bowling duo of Jasprit Bumrah and Adam Milne to watch out for on Thursday.

Elaborating on his selections, Manjrekar said:

‘’Rohit Sharma is back in the playing XI, that is what we are getting to hear. He is fit to play against Kolkata. So, Rohit is one. No.2 is Jasprit Bumrah."

"Quinton de Kock, with the kind of pitches we have in the UAE, people like him will like the ball to come on, and we saw that in the last game against Chennai,. Adam Milne. First half of this Indian T20 league, expect fast bowlers to make an impression, and Kieron Pollard,’’ he added.

Sharma will make a comeback to the MI playing XI after missing the first game due to injury. The accomplished opener is the leading run-scorer for MI in the ongoing season, scoring 250 runs in seven innings.

De Kock looked good in his first game on IPL 2021 resumption, smashing three boundaries during his 12-ball 17. But he failed to convert that into a big knock. Milne (2/21 in four overs) was the pick of the bowlers for MI against CSK, while Bumrah and Pollard had lacklustre outings, going by their staggering standards.

"Venkatesh Iyer was quite a revelation" - Sanjay Manjrekar

Manjrekar picked the KKR opening duo of Shubman Gill and Venkatesh Iyer to watch out for against MI on Thursday. He also picked the trio of Lockie Ferguson, Andre Russell and Varun Chakravarthy.

Explaining his choices, the former player said:

‘’I gotta go with Shubman Gill with his new approach. Varun Chakravarthy, somebody I need to have, got three wickets in the last match. Lockie Ferguson is looking really good."

"Andre Russell, he is another player to watch out for. Venkatesh Iyer from Madhya Pradesh was quite a revelation batting at the top of the order, with his approach and talent’’

All five KKR players Manjrekar picked had brilliant outings against RCB. Debutant Iyer enthralled with his exquisite stroke play, while a refreshing approach from Gill was heartening to see.

Russell (3/9 in three overs) and Chakravarthy (3/13 in four overs) did the bulk of the damage with the ball. Lockie Ferguson, too, gave a good account of himself, taking 2/24 in four overs.

The Knight Riders will hope to repeat their RCB performance against the Mumbai Indians on Thursday.