In a major blow to Mumbai Indians' pace attack, Adam Milne has pulled himself out of the Indian Premier League (IPL) whereas Sri Lankan bowler Lasith Malinga will be unavailable for the initial six matches. Mumbai Indians are set to open their campaign against Delhi Capitals on Sunday but it would tricky for the Blue Army to find a replacement for their strike bowlers.
The three-time IPL winners will look forward to winning the initial matches to begin on a good note after a disappointing season last year. The Mumbai lads managed to win four games in the second half but were pushed to the fifth spot due to the slow start during the first seven matches last year as they won only two of them.
As per the reports, Milne decided to pull out after suffering from a swollen heel. The Kiwi bowler was signed by MI at the IPL auction for the base price of ₹75 lakhs.
Malinga, on the other hand, had pulled out of the competition for at least six MI games in order to play the domestic 50-over competition. The Sri Lankan selectors have made it mandatory for the players to play the tournament in order to be considered for selection in the World Cup squad.
The Blue Army will now look forward towards a considerable replacement and it is possible that they might bring West Indian speedster Alazarri Joseph as a replacement. The Caribbean is yet to make his IPL debut. Mumbai currently have three overseas bowlers - Mitchell McClenaghan, Jason Behrendorff and Ben Cutting - along with Indian pacers Jasprit Bumrah, Barinder Sran, and all-rounder Hardik Pandya in the squad.
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