The Mumbai Indians on Thursday roped in Riley Meredith to replace Jhye Richardson in the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL). Richardson was ruled out of the season with an injury and Meredith, who had also represented the side in 2022, was signed for INR 1.50 crore. The Indian Premier League (IPL) confirmed the signing from Mumbai Indians on Thursday evening.
A press release on IPLT20.com read: “Mumbai Indians (MI) on Wednesday named Riley Meredith as a replacement for injured fast bowler Jhye Richardson. Richardson is suffering from a hamstring injury and is ruled out of the 16th edition of the TATA Indian Premier League (IPL).”
JUST IN: Mumbai Indians have signed Riley Meredith for INR 1.5 crore as a replacement for the injured Jhye Richardson#IPL2023 pic.twitter.com/51ew1EHBEr
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) April 6, 2023
It further stated, “His replacement, Australian fast bowler, Riley Meredith has played 5 T20Is picking up 8 wickets that includes a three-wicket haul. He has represented the Punjab Kings & Mumbai Indians in the previous editions of the IPL. He joins MI for INR 1.5 Crore.”
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In his first appearance in the tournament in 2021, Riley Meredith represented the Punjab Kings. Mumbai Indians had endured a poor start to the season this year, as they witnessed an 8-wicket loss against the Royal Challengers Bangalore in their opener on Sunday night.
Tilak Varma was largely the saving grace for the team as he scored an unbeaten 84, which prompted the MI to 171/7 in 20 overs; however, RCB chased down the target with 23 balls to spare. The Rohit Sharma-led MI are aiming for stronger performances this year after a disastrous 2022 season, where they finished at the bottom of the table with only four wins in 14 matches.
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The last time MI won their opening game was way back in 2012, when they registered a win over Chennai Super Kings (CSK), and Shane Bond – who is the bowling coach of the franchise – wasn’t too happy with the side’s outing.
In the post-match press conference, Shane Bond said, “This is my ninth season and we haven’t won our opening game. So it’s getting frustrating. At the end of the day, it’s a tough competition. It’s always better to have more wins than losses. It’s a tough way to start.”
