The Mumbai Indians have a new Tendulkar. A left-handed allrounder, Arjun opened the attack against the Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday. He didn’t get to bat, so there were no comparisons with his father, Sachin, yet. Tendulkar is a huge name in world cricket, and Arjun’s first step is promising. No doubt, the pressure to live up to the Tendulkar name is enormous, but how he handles it will decide his cricketing future. More games will shed more clues on his talent.

Tendulkar’s two overs cost him 17 runs as Venkatesh Iyer blazed away to a century. But the target of 186 never worried Mumbai after Ishan Kishan gave them a flying start. Captaincy seemed to have helped Suryakumar Yadav rediscover his touch as he unfurled some trademark shots to ensure the five-time winners’ revival after two early losses in four games.

The Gujarat Titans too slumped to their second loss in five games after the Rajasthan Royals turned the tables on the defending champions, who were in control for much of the match. Captain Sanju Samson led Rajasthan out of the dumps with a fiery knock, and Shimron Hetmyer guided them home and to the top of the points heap. As Rajasthan’s stock soared, the Delhi Capitals continued to dawdle, losing all their five games with head coach Ricky Ponting coping much flak for the poor results. With only Axar Patel scoring briskly and captain David Warner unable to shift gears, Delhi’s challenge seems over. Unless they flip their form.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-INP