Hardik, Rohit, Suryakumar meet Dubai crown prince in Mumbai during business forum

New Delhi, April 9 (IANS) Indian cricket stars, and Mumbai Indians trio, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, and Hardik Pandya met with Dubai Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum in Mumbai during the Dubai-India Business Forum. They weres also joined by ICC chairman and former BCCI secretary Jay Shah

The meeting took place just a day after Mumbai Indians suffered a 12-run defeat to Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Wankhede Stadium — their first home loss to RCB in 10 years.

Jay Shah shared a photo from the meeting on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), writing, "Delighted to help connect cricket with visionary leadership in Mumbai where it was a true honour to meet His Highness @HamdanMohammed with @ImRo45, @hardikpandya7, and @surya_14kumar. These moments typify the uniting influence of cricket worldwide."

Earlier, star batter Virat Kohli led the RCB charge with a classy 67 off 42, his second half-century of the season, while skipper and Player of the Match Rajat Patidar contributing 64 off 32 and Jitesh Sharma’s quickfire 40 off 21 powered the visitors to a commanding 221/5 to beat Mumbai Indians by 12 runs.

In reply, MI skipper Hardik Pandya (42 off 15) and Tilak Varma (56 off 29) launched a sensational counterattack after the top order collapsed, threatening to pull off a stunning chase. But RCB’s disciplined death bowling ensured they crossed the line in a pulsating finish.

Rohit has slumped to his worst IPL start since 2020 as he was dismissed for a duck in the campaign opener against Chennai Super Kings, followed by 8, 13 and 17 in the four matches he has played so far in the season.

With just one win in five matches, Mumbai are lagging on eighth position and will next face Delhi Capitals on April 13 at Arun Jaitley Stadium.

--IANS

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