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Mumbai Indians (MI) may have started IPL 2025 on a familiar sluggish note, but they’ve found their stride just in time. With 14 points from 11 matches, MI, led by Hardik Pandya, are sitting in second place on the 10-team points table and well within reach of the playoffs.

Middle-order mainstay Tilak Varma, who has played a key role in MI’s recent surge, took a break from the cricket grind for a light-hearted faceoff—on the pickleball court—with popular actor Vijay Deverakonda.

Pickleball Bet Ends in Actor’s Victory

Ahead of MI’s crucial game against Gujarat Titans at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday, Varma and Deverakonda teamed up with partners for a ‘best of three’ pickleball showdown.

Deverakonda even upped the stakes. He promised to don an MI jersey if Varma’s team could beat his. In the end, the actor had the last laugh, winning the contest 2-1.

While the match was all in good fun, MI remain serious contenders for the top spot in a playoff race that’s anything but predictable.

A Crowded Race for the Top Four

The playoff equation is getting tighter with each passing match. MI had briefly topped the table last week but were soon displaced by Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). Then, in another shuffle, Punjab Kings leapfrogged MI to grab second position.

With just a handful of games left, every point counts. A win against Gujarat Titans could push MI back to the summit of the table, possibly edging out RCB on net run rate.

The constant shifts in standings may be frustrating for fans and players alike, but MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene remains unfazed.

Jayawardene Focused Only on What Can Be Controlled

Jayawardene stressed that worrying about the table is pointless with so many moving parts still in play.

“I mean, obviously, the number of games that you’re playing and how that composition works, there is always going to be change, especially with Punjab Kings having that odd number because of the rain-off game.

“So, all those things that we as a franchise can’t control or I as a coach can’t control, I’ll just focus on the game tomorrow, and then after that, the next game, we have three good games against us, which is good for us.

“So we just want to do what we’ve been doing, play some good cricket. The boys are focused on that, and the rest I can’t control. So, my focus would be what they might control at this point and just keep focusing on,” he said at the pre-match press conference.