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We need to put pressure on KL Rahul: Mumbai Indians bowling coach Shane Bond

Mumbai Indians (MI) haven’t had the best starts to IPL 2020 and would be raring to bounce back with a victory in the coming contest. So far, the Rohit Sharma-led side has managed to register a sole win in three matches, however, they are known to be the slow starters who make it to the center stage as the tournament progresses. 

Ahead of the upcoming contest versus Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), Mumbai Indians bowling coach Shane Bond feels they would have to create pressure on the opening duo of Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul, and rightly so. 

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Both KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal have been in hot form in IPL 2020. They are among the highest run-scorers in the concurrent season, and there’s a strong chance that they might  end up scoring in excess of 500 runs.

KL Rahul, in particular, can be a force to reckon with for the Mumbai Indians if he gets going from the very moment. In 10 innings against the four-time IPL champions, the 29-year-old has aggregated 486 runs, averaging 69.43, striking at 130.65, with a hundred and 3 fifties.  

KL Rahul is dynamic player: Shane Bond

Bond spoke how Mumbai Indians are gearing up for KL Rahul, who has been one of the highest run-getters in IPL in the last couple of editions and is currently enjoying a dream run once again. 

“KL Rahul has got runs against us in the past, he is a brilliant player. Look, we know he is a dynamic player and he scores all through the ground. We also know that he takes his time during the middle overs. So it will be an opportunity for us to create pressure on him if he gets that far in his innings against us. In the end, we cannot allow him to score runs he is strong at.” 

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The veteran pacer believes that Mumbai Indians’ pace attack, which is one of the strongest units in the ongoing season, are looking to quickly assess and adapt to the conditions offered in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). 

“Look, I think what we are trying to do is adapt to the conditions. When you turn up in Dubai or Abu Dhabi, you have some idea as to how it will play looking at the history, but the fact is that you have to adapt as quick you can, we have a simple theory, we try to bowl seven metres as fast bowling group and five metres as a spin bowling group. We try to keep it simple and we also try to adjust as soon as we can” he added. 

The former Kiwi pacer who made 120 international appearances and grabbed 259 wickets, spoke how yorkers could pose a threat for the bowlers as there are chances that they could backfire. 

Also Read – 3 Reasons why RCB can win IPL 2020

“I think yorker is just one of the many balls that a fast bowler has in their armoury, if you look at the pitches we have played on, the square boundaries have been really long so you could argue that the length ball is harder to hit for a six if the wicket has slowed down. It is a tough ball to hit under pressure if you fail in execution you could be hit for a six,” said Bond. 

In the points table, Mumbai Indians are placed at the fifth spot with an NRR of +0.654 while Kings XI Punjab are just a spot above with NRR of +1.498. Both sides will lock horns on October 1 at Sheikh Zayed Stadium, in Abu Dhabi. 

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V Shashankhttps://www.mpl.live/
A cricket aficionado who has been following the game since the historic Ashes 2013-14. "People throw stones at you, you turn them into milestones." - Sachin Tendulkar

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