MI’s bowling all-rounder, Arjun Tendulkar left his side’s bowling coach, Lasith Malinga, stunned with his right-arm pace bowling skills during their net practice session at the Wankhede stadium. In a video shared by MI’s social media handle, Malinga was seen impressed beyond words with Arjun’s pace bowling skills, ahead of their highly-anticipated fixture against CSK in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 on April 14. Son of MI and Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar, Arjun is yet to make a mark in the IPL after having made only 4 appearances for the franchise since joining the side in 2021.
The video depicts Arjun bowling with using his right arm, and even managing to hit the sole stump in the nets on two occasions. In reaction to this, Malinga was left perplexed and could be seen pointing out the problem of MI having “too many pace bowlers” in the side. Making his debut for the side in IPL 2023, Arjun went on to play 4 matches that season, bagging just 3 wickets and 13 runs across all those games. The 24-year-old has remained a fringe player for the side for the majority of his 3-year stay with the franchise, having been picked for 30 Lakhs by MI during the IPL 2022 auction.
The video has garnered many reactions from MI fans, hailing for the youngster to be given a chance by MI during their ongoing IPL 2024 campaign.
ARJUN’S DOMESTIC CRICKET FORM
Arjun has enjoyed a fairly decent domestic cricket form while playing for Goa, which has seen the all-rounder bag 21 wickets and score 481 runs across his 13 appearances. When it comes to his T20 record, Arjun has bagged 26 wickets in his 20 appearances, but has only managed to score 98 runs with the bat.
IPL 2024 Full Coverage | IPL 2024 Points Table and Standings | 2024 IPL Full Schedule
After sealing their second victory of the season with their win over RCB, MI now gear up for their highly-anticipated clash against defending champions CSK, which carries only a slight chance of Arjun getting handed his first IPL 2024 game.