Captain Hardik Pandya was not among the first group of Mumbai Indians players and support personnel to fly to Raipur on Wednesday. However, he is anticipated to be healthy for Sunday’s Indian Premier League match against RCB.
The Mumbai Indians players and staff will travel to Raipur in separate batches, with a five-day hiatus between their final game against the Lucknow Super Giants on May 4 and their next match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on May 10.
Due to a back spasm, Pandya was unable to play in MI’s most recent game on Monday against LSG.
He was recommended to rest for the match against LSG, according to a team source, and his ailment is reportedly minimal. Nonetheless, he will be in charge of the team during their crucial matchup with the Rajat Patidar-led squad.
Due to the limited number of aircraft alternatives between Mumbai and Raipur, there are also logistical issues. There will be no training in Raipur on Thursday for the group that left on Wednesday.
The Mumbai Indians are now in ninth place in the standings with seven losses and three wins. To maintain their modest chances of making the playoffs, they must win each of their remaining games.
It’s also unclear how Pandya, who has missed two IPL matches owing to health concerns, would perform in the crucial match against the reigning champions RCB at Raipur’s Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium.
After the match against LSG, opener Ryan Rickelton stated that he had little knowledge of the situation, despite the fact that Suryakumar Yadav led the side in Pandya’s absence.
“I don’t know when he’s expected to be back. I only found out this afternoon that he had back spasms. I’m unaware of the extent of it or how bad it is or what he’s feeling. But I’m sure he’ll be back with the group as we head to Raipur this week,” Rickelton said.
