For a city that is used to winning, the Mumbai Indians have let their fans down in the IPL. That might all change this season.

By Sanjay Manjrekar

Mumbai are currently in the top two of the IPL standings and though we are still in the early stages , they are showing signs that that are making their fans very hopeful for this season.

Their wins have been convincing and not centred around just the big names. The lesser names in the team like Saurabh Tiwary and Ambati Rayudu have made some match winning contributions so far.

But the most positive sign for them has been the mindset of their Captain. Sachin Tendulkar is batting like he has got a ‘second wind‘.

Second wind is a phenomena that a marathon runner often experiences when he is at a stage in his marathon when he has nothing left in his body to give and he still has five kms to go.

Then miraculously the ‘second wind’ kicks in and suddenly the runner finds the lungs and the legs to almost cruise to the finishing line.

Sachin Tendulkar is going through a superb run in international cricket and it is not just about the runs. What is also striking is the fact that he is also playing some of the shots that he had put in the deep closet and just forgotten about them. Those shots are starting to make a reappearance.

I cannot say that Tendulkar is batting like he did in his prime but he is certainly batting the best he has done in the last six years or so.

That means Mumbai Indians now get Tendulkar the batsman in their IPL campaign this year. The last two editions they had Tendulkar the captain and a batsman who was happy to play second fiddle to the Jayasuriyas and the Duminys.

This time Tendulkar is willing to play the lead role with the bat instead of being in the supporting cast.

His 63 off just 32 balls against Delhi was evidence of just that. He also gave an important lesson via that innings to many other batsmen in the IPL. His knock did not include a single six.

By the way, I feel many batsmen in T20 take far too much risk than really needed by playing the lofted shots when ground shots can achieve the desired result.

Also Kieron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo, Sanath Jayasuriya are players that any team will pick only for their batting but they also turn up and bowl four good overs in a T20 Innings. That is another area of strength for the Mumbai Indians that will help them in critical matches. All they need now is the element of luck.

Without luck a good side can win a Test match but not a T20 game.

(Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar is a commentator with ESPN STAR Sports)