Suryakumar Yadav shatters Sachin Tendulkar’s 15-year record with career-defining IPL season

For the second time in his career, Suryakumar Yadav recorded a 600-run season in the Indian Premier League (IPL). 2023 was the previous year, when the Mumbai Indians had reached the playoffs, making it through to Qualifier 2. Two years later, as MI qualified for the knockouts again, Suryakumar stood among the top in the run-scoring charts as he registered a career-defining season, which saw him surpass the legendary Sachin Tendulkar.

The India T20I captain achieved the feat during Mumbai’s final league game against the Punjab Kings at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. En route to his half-century, his fifth in the season, Suryakumar recorded the most prolific season by a Mumbai Indians batter. He shattered Sachin’s 15-year record to become the highest individual run-getter in a single IPL season. The former MI captain had amassed 618 runs in the 2010 season, laced with five fifties.

Suryakumar currently has 640 runs in 14 matches this season, at a strike rate of 168.54. It is also his best-ever show in an IPL season, going past his 2023 show of 605 runs in 16 matches. With Mumbai having qualified for the playoffs, Suryakumar will have the chance to become the first Mumbai batter to reach the 700-run mark in an IPL edition. That would make him the third Indian batter to the feat after Virat Kohli (2016, 2024) and Shubman Gill (2023).

MI, PBKS eye top two finish

Four teams have already qualified for the playoffs this season—Gujarat Titans, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, MI, and PBKS—and the remaining two league matches will decide the final standings.

With 17 points, Punjab are second, but a defeat to Mumbai could push them to third or even fourth, potentially setting them up for the Eliminator on May 30.

Finishing in the top two seems tougher for the Shreyas Iyer-led side as they not only need a win against a formidable Mumbai, but also hope GT (18 points) and RCB (17 points) lose their respective final matches. Thus, PBKS, who lost their previous game to Delhi Capitals, are in a must-win situation against MI in their push for a top-two finish. For MI, their superior Net Run Rate among all the four qualifying teams can be beneficial if they beat Punjab Kings and GT and RCB lose their matches.