Why won’t Jonny Bairstow and Shikhar Dhawan be playing in the 33rd IPL 2024 Match between MI and PBKS?

At the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, Chandigarh, the Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Mumbai Indians (MI) are set to play in Match 33 of the Indian Premier League 2024 (IPL 2024).

After winning the toss, Mumbai was asked to bat first by PBKS captain Sam Curran. Punjab made a few changes to their playing XI heading into the match after suffering two straight losses.

Shikhar Dhawan, their captain, was still out after suffering a shoulder injury in the previous game. With 152 runs in five innings at a strike rate of 125.61 and an average of 30.40, the southpaw is currently his team’s top run scorer. Curran will assume the leadership responsibilities in his stead.

In addition to him, Punjab benched Jonny Bairstow, who opened the innings. The 34-year-old has had an awful season thus far, scoring just 96 runs in his six innings with a 16 average and a 131.50 strike rate.

Also read: IPL 2024: Sam Curran, the interim captain, is trusted by Sunil Joshi, who provides an update on Shikhar Dhawan’s injury

With Bairstow out of the picture, Rilee Rossouw will start the season’s first game. During his first 14 IPL outings, the southpaw scored 262 runs at an average of 21.83, including one fifty. In addition to Bairstow, PBKS management benched Atharva Taide, who opened the innings in Dhawan’s absence in the previous game and scored 15 (12).

In contrast, Mumbai made no changes to their playing XI despite losing their most recent match against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK).