Mayank Yadav has passed all his fitness tests, in LSG’s potential playing 12 against MI: Morne Morkel

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) pace sensation Mayank Yadav is set to make his return from a long injury break in Tuesday’s Indian Premier League (IPL) fixture against Mumbai Indians (MI) in Lucknow, LSG bowling coach Morne Morkel revealed on the eve of the clash.

Mayank’s availability comes as a massive boost for the KL Rahul-led side, who currently sit just outside the top four on the points table with 10 points from nine outings, and the 21-year-old’s express pace will certainly come in handy as they aim to reach the playoffs for the third time in as many seasons.

“Mayank Yadav is fit. He has passed all his fitness tests. We are excited to have him back in the squad and in the potential playing 12 tomorrow,” Morkel told reporters on the eve of the LSG-MI fixture at Lucknow’s Ekana Stadium.

Mayank hitting express speeds in the high 150s, including the
fastest delivery of the season
measuring 156.7 kmph, has been one of the highlights of the 17th season of the cash-rich league so far. The Delhi bowler got his IPL career off to a roaring start by collecting six wickets in his first two matches since
making his debut against Punjab Kings
.

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Mayank, however, left the field after bowling just one over in the home game against Gujarat Titans, and would end up missing each of LSG’s next five fixtures, including the back-to-back wins against defending champions Chennai Super Kings, due to a lower abdominal strain.

A victory for LSG on Tuesday will help them go level with the second-ranked Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on 12 points, though they latter are likely to stay ahead due to their Net Run Rate (NRR) that, at +1.096, is the best among all teams so far this season.

The struggling Mumbai Indians, meanwhile, will be desperately eyeing a win on Tuesday in order to keep their faint playoff hopes alive as anything less than a victory in each of their remaining five matches could spell the end of Hardik Pandya’s hopes of guiding the five-time champions into the playoffs in his first season in charge.

Even if they win each of their remaining matches, MI might still be dependent on other results as well as NRR for them to enter the knockouts phase for a second consecutive season.