James Pattinson
Australian pacer James Pattinson, who has been named as a replacement player for Lasith Malinga, completed his mandatory quarantine period in the UAE and has joined the Mumbai Indians squad in preparing for the 13th season of the Indian Premier League.
Malinga opted out of IPL 2020 owing to "personal reasons" and Pattinson, who earlier played for Kolkata Knight Riders, has been called upon as his replacement.
In a video shared by Mumbai Indians on Tuesday, Pattinson admitted that it would be huge experinece for him to bowl alongside Jasprit Bumrah who he considers as the best T20 bowler in the world, and Trent Boult.
“Personally it is fantastic to work with some of the best bowlers in the world. Obviously, Bumrah is probably, the best T20 bowler in the world. And Boulty is up there as well. So, for me it will be a great experience to be around those guys [here at Mumbai Indians]," he said.
“I know the games are just around the corner, so if I can raise the intensity and hopefully be ready to go,” he said.
The Aussie cricketer also spoke about bowling in UAE conditions and that he has previously played ODI matches in this country.
“I’ve played a few one day internationals here before, so I have gotten a little bit of experience here in the UAE.
Look, there are obviously different wickets. They are a lot drier, and there is only three wickets being used during the tournament, so it might be a bit slower and low as the tournament goes on. So, maybe the slower ball and stuff like that might come into play a lot more.
As a fast bowler you are just trying to bang the wicket as hard as possible and change of pace and bowl fast. That’s the thing with T20 cricket.”
Mumbai Indians, the defending champions, will take on Chennai Super Kings in the season opener on September 19 on Abu Dhabi.
