Jayawardene steps down as coach, gets bigger role at IPL's Mumbai Indians

14.09.2022 - 10:19 channelnewsasia.com

MUMBAI : Mahela Jayawardene will step down as Mumbai Indians head coach and take on a bigger role at the franchise due to its increasing international presence, the Indian Premier League side said on Wednesday.Mumbai's owners recently purchased teams in the International League T20 based in the United Arab Emirates, and the Cape Town side in a new league in South Africa.Former Sri Lanka captain Jayawardene will become global head of performance, Mumbai said in a statement."With the expansion of MI #OneFamily which now includes MI Emirates and MI Cape Town along with Mumbai Indians, the team management recognised the need for a central team," the team said."As part of building the structure, two MI veterans Mahela Jayawardene and Zaheer Khan with deep knowledge of the MI value system and proven track record, are being elevated to new roles."Led by India captain Rohit Sharma, Mumbai are one of the most successful teams in the IPL, winning the tournament five times.In his new role, Jayawardene will work closely with each of the head coaches to make sure the three teams play a consistent brand of cricket.Former India fast bowler Zaheer has been elevated to global head of cricket development from his previous position as director of cricket operations and will look after the franchise's scouting and talent development.

cricket as Rohit Sharma South Africa Uae India Cape Town Sri Lanka

With an unassailable 2-0 lead in the 3-match T20I series, the Indian cricket team has the opportunity to test a few reserves in the third and final match at Indore's Holkar Stadium. The batting unit has come out all guns blazing in the two matches so far, with Suryakumar Yadav leading the charge. The bowling unit, on the other hand, has left plenty to be desired. With the fate of the series sealed, one or two changes can be expected. Shreyas Iyer and Mohammed Siraj remain two players who would be eager to be given an opportunity.

"Need To Get Our Act Together": Rohit Sharma On India's Death Bowling

India's death overs bowling issues is not a concern but the team does need to improve its execution at the back end of the match, said skipper Rohit Sharma on Sunday. Invited to bat, India posted a massive 237 for 3 but South Africa recovered from a disastrous start to take the game deep before eventually falling short by 16 runs as the hosts claimed their first win over the Proteas in a T20 series at home. "The team wants to play and bowl in a certain way and we want to give them that freedom. Yes, we have not really bowled well in the death in the last five or six games. But that is the area where people will challenge us and we are doing the same to the opposition as well," Rohit said in the post-match presentation.

India vs South Africa: Indian pacers look to impress in Jasprit Bumrah's absence as Guwahati gears up for 2nd T20I

Umesh Yadav, bowled their hearts out at Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati ahead of the second match on Sunday. Bumrah, in all likelihood, is set to miss the upcoming T20 World Cup Down Under and that possibility was enough to add extra fuel to the pace duo’s efforts in hot and humid condition. Not in the original squad for the big-ticket event, Siraj and Yadav breathed fire at the nets during an optional practice session on Friday.

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The Indian T20I team combination has seen a distinct trait in the last few matches. The veteran Dinesh Karthik is being preferred more over Rishabh Pant in the wicketkeeper-batter's role. Karthik's ability as a finisher in the No. 6 position seems to be working in his favour. Pant, however, brings his left-handed batting prowess to the table - a quality which is important for Team India, especially after Ravindra Jadeja was ruled out of the T20 World Cup in Australia.

"We All Will Miss Ravindra Jadeja, But...": Ex-India Captain On How Star All-Rounder's Replacement Has Stepped Up

The series against Australia turned out to be a great one for the Indian cricket team. The Rohit Sharma-led side went down in the first T20I, but made a strong comeback in the next two matches to pocket the three-match contest 2-1. Left-arm spinner Axar Patel was the star of the show as he was adjudged Man of the Series for taking eight wickets on three matches. He not only had the highest number of wickets in the series but was most economical (6.30 RPO) too.

Failed to defend targets because of dew: India batting coach Vikram Rathour

Asia Cup. Since the Super 4s of the Asia Cup, India have played six T20Is and won three of them while losing three. However, all the three defeats -- against Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Australia -- have come while defending targets. Contrary to Rathour's claims, none of the Indian team members, who spoke to the media after the defeats against Pakistan and Sri Lanka in Dubai, blamed it on the dew factor making defending difficult.