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Mumbai Indians (MI) head coach Mahela Jayawardene has underlined the importance of flexible batting, pointing to Tilak Varma's evolving role as a major advantage ahead of their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 opening clash against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Sunday.
Speaking at a pre-match press conference, Jayawardene said the team values players who can adapt to different situations and bat in multiple positions. He noted that Tilak's role for India in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup reflects that adaptability, which aligns well with Mumbai Indians' strategy. During the T20 World Cup, Varma, who originally plays at the number three position, batted in the middle-order in the Men in Blue's T20 World Cup victory. "Yeah, definitely. We want that flexibility. We've had that in the past as well. We've used that with Tilak, with Surya, with Hardik. So that will continue," Jayawardene said. The Mumbai head coach added that having players capable of shifting roles depending on match situations provides a crucial edge in a tournament as competitive as the Indian Premier League. He emphasised that Tilak's mindset and experience of floating across the batting order for India further strengthen the team's depth. "Actually, what Tilak did with India as well is part and parcel of that. The mindset is that. So it is definitely a plus factor for us. That we have those kinds of guys who can play different roles, different situations," he added. The three-time champions KKR will kickstart their IPL 2026 campaign against five-time champions Mumbai Indians in a clash of heavyweights at Mumbai on March 29. Mumbai Indians squad for IPL 2026: Hardik Pandya, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ryan Rickleton, Robin Minz, Raj Bawa, Raghu Sharma, Mitchell Santner, Corbin Bosch, Naman Dhir, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult, Allah Ghafanzar, Ashwani Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Will Jacks, Sherfane Rutherford, Mayank Markande, Shardul Thakur, Quinton de Kock, Danish Malewar, Mohammad Izhar, Atharva Ankolekar, Mayank Rawat. (ANI)
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