IPL 2020 | Mumbai Indians are going to finish table-toppers this season, predicts Brad Hogg

Safe to say, Mumbai Indians are one of the favourites going into this edition of the IPL in the Middle East. Alongside possessing one of the best openers in the world, Rohit Sharma, the franchise has also roped in the Australian top-order batsman Chris Lynn to strengthen their top-order. 

With Quinton de Kock too in the fray, Mumbai have as many as three batsmen in the setup who can take the game away from the opposition. Combined with their fiery bowling attack, spearheaded by Jasprit Bumrah, it has led to a lot of critics, including Brad Hogg, to predict that they would finish at the top of the table. 

“Mumbai Indians are going to finish on top of the regular season. Will they take out the final, let’s wait and see. The edge for the Mumbai Indians is their quality top four,” Hogg said in the latest video uploaded on his Youtube channel.

While the Paltans have a good chance of winning the tournament, Hogg was still unsure of how Rohit Sharma was going to pick his four foreign recruits. In the past, the Indian opener has trusted to go with De Kock, Kieron Pollard, Lasith Malinga and Mitchell McClenaghan as his first-choice. However, with the inclusion of Nathan Coulter-Nile, Chris Lynn and Trent Boult, it might be a tedious choice for the skipper to choose his team.

“They have an abundance of all-rounders, good spinners but they have got the best pace battery in the IPL this year. The flaw for them is the selection table, what balance are they going to utilize with their overseas players to make up a prominent XI? That will be their big issue,” Hogg further added.

Hogg picked Suryakumar Yadav as the standout player for the franchise this season, even admitting that he can end up as one of the top five run-scorers in the competition. 

“The standout for the Mumbai Indians is going to be Suryakumar Yadav. I am just thinking this quality batsman is going to come along this year. He showed progress over the last couple of years. He was really enjoying with the Mumbai Indians and he is liking his position in that middle-order. Watch out, I think he will be in the top 5 run-scorers of this particular tournament,” he added.