Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has advised a struggling Suryakumar Yadav to score runs straight and in the ‘V’ for the first few balls he faces when the Mumbai Indians (MI) take on the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday, April 23. 

Pathan has noticed a trend in Suryakumar’s recent dismissals, where he has gotten out trying to score quickly, square of the wicket on both sides. Instead, he should focus on scoring straight to return to form and contribute towards MI’s late charge to the top four in the second half of the innings. 

“The real Suryakumar Yadav, please stand up. If Mumbai want to book a place in the top four, runs need to come from the bat of Suryakumar Yadav. He has been dismissed for a duck this season, that too a golden duck, meaning you are not able to build your innings. I did a piece during commentary that in the first 10 balls, he gets out playing too square of the wicket, both on the legside and on the offside. Score runs straight. Try to score some runs straight for a few balls, and if you do that, you will be unstoppable. Last year, you scored 700 runs with ease at an excellent strike-rate,” Pathan said on his YouTube channel.

Suryakumar has had a poor start to the 2026 Indian Premier League. The 35-year-old has scored 121 runs from six matches at an average of just 20.16. He has only hit one half-century so far, scoring 51 against the Delhi Capitals, a game in which he captained in the absence of Hardik Pandya. His strike-rate, however, is not the worst, hitting at 151.25. 

In contrast, India’s T20 captain scored 717 runs last season in the IPL at a strike-rate of 167.91 whilst averaging 65.18 as MI finished in the top four and were one game away from reaching the 2025 IPL final.

MI and CSK are both languishing in the bottom half of the points table, with both five-time champions currently on four points from their first six matches of the season.