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Arguably the most decorated side in the Indian Premier League (IPL) – Mumbai Indians will kickstart their campaign against Royal Challengers Bangalore at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Sunday, April 2. While the franchise ended with a wooden spoon last edition, they bolstered the squad quite a bit with few additions at the mini-auction in December 2022. Moreover, it will not be a surprise if Rohit Sharma and Co. make their comeback in a resounding fashion as they boast a pretty well-rounded unit. A strong bunch of young lads coupled with seasoned cricketers should help the five-time winners going ahead in the competition. On that note, let’s look at the three uncapped Indian players to watch out for from MI ahead of the IPL 2023:
Kumar Kartikeya
The Uttar Pradesh-born spin-bowling all-rounder has been in decent form considering his recent stats in the Irani and Ranji Trophy. In his last five outings for Madhya Pradesh, he got 14 wickets and also notched up a half-century (61 runs) in the Ranji Trophy match against Tripura. Assuming he gets a chance to feature in the playing XI, Kumar Kartikeya will look to put his best foot forward and continue his purple patch with the ball.
Hrithik Shokeen
The 22-year-old Hrithik Shokeen got the runs and wickets for Delhi in the recently concluded Ranji Trophy. The spinner picked up 13 wickets and also got vital runs for his side in the matches. In the five games, he returned scores of 29, 68* and 51, 45, 45 and 36*, 4 and 12* for Delhi. While there is a lot for the young lad to deliver, working along with the seasoned players in the Mumbai Indians set-up will surely help him flourish.
Tilak Varma
In the Vijay Hazare Trophy match against Manipur, Tilak slammed an unbeaten ton (126 runs) off 77 balls to steer Hyderabad to a win. He was also picked in the India A side to play against Bangladesh A wherein he got an unbeaten 33 runs in the unofficial Test. Since then, the batter has not played much cricket but will be raring to impress on the biggest stage. In 36 T20 innings, he has amassed 1075 runs at an average of 36.83 which includes nine fifties to his name.