Dubai, Sep 19: Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma opted out of his team's opening game of the UAE-leg of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021, which resumed here on Sunday (September 19), due to a knee niggle he had sustained during the recent England tour.
Keiron Pollard led the franchise in the absence of Rohit, who had struck a century in the second innings of the fourth Test at the Oval but did not take the field when England batted.
MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene - while interacting with the commentators during the first innings of the match - revealed the India vice-captain in limited-overs format was kept out of the game as a precautionary measure.
"Rohit had something going in the last Test (Oval), so we thought a couple of days of extra precaution," he said.
Earlier in the day, Pollard - while speaking at the toss - apprised about Rohit's fitness and said, "Rohit is okay, he'll be fine sooner rather than later, I'm just the captain for today."
With the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 beginning immediately after the conclusion of the IPL, the Indian batting maestro would not wish to rush his return. Mumbai Indians next play Kolkata Knight Riders on September 23 in Abu Dhabi and it will be interesting to see if the Mumbaikar makes a comeback in the next game.
Meanwhile, Chennai Super Kings defeated Mumbai Indians in the phase-two opener in the UAE, thanks to an unbeaten 88 from CSK opener Ruturaj Gaikwad. CSK posted a decent 156 for six after electing to bat first and restricted Mumbai Indians to 136 for 8 and won the match by 20 runs.