Mumbai

Harbhajan Singh believes Mumbai Indians might have been in a stronger position in the race for the IPL playoffs had former captain Rohit Sharma returned earlier from his hamstring injury.

Rohit made an impactful comeback on Monday with a fluent 84 as Mumbai Indians completed their highest-ever successful chase in the Indian Premier League, overhauling 229 against Lucknow Super Giants by six wickets in Mumbai. He had missed five matches after suffering the injury while batting against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on April 12.

Speaking on JioHotstar, Harbhajan said Rohit’s presence in the middle made a major difference, adding that if the opener had recovered a little earlier, Mumbai might have won “a game or two” during their losing streak and remained in a healthier playoff position.

Mumbai Indians currently have three wins and seven defeats from 10 matches, leaving them on six points. According to Harbhajan, the five-time champions still have an outside chance if they win all four of their remaining matches and reach 14 points, where net run-rate scenarios could come into play.

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Former India head coach Ravi Shastri, meanwhile, said Lucknow’s biggest issue this season has been inconsistency. He noted that when their bowling performs, the batting fails to capitalize, and when the batters score heavily, the bowlers concede too many runs, making it difficult for the team to build momentum.