Ryan Rickelton excited to play for Mumbai Indians in IPL
What's the story
South African cricketer Ryan Rickelton has expressed his excitement about joining the Mumbai Indians (MI) for the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) season.
He is particularly excited to share the dressing room with stars Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah.
Meanwhile, MI recently secured Rickelton for ₹1 crore at the 2025 IPL mega-auction in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Here's what Rickelton had to say.
Career highlights
Rickelton's journey and performance in SA20
Rickelton, also representing MI Cape Town in SA20, played a key role in their maiden title victory, smashing a rapid 33 off 15 balls (one four, four sixes) in the finals against defending champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape.
Additionally, he was the leading run-scorer in SA20's second season and maintained his form, amassing 336 runs in eight matches with an impressive strike rate of 178.72.
Future prospects
Rickelton's anticipation and learning opportunities in IPL
"I am extremely excited to make my debut in the IPL. I always wanted to play in the IPL and MI is such a powerful and great franchise so I'm really looking forward to getting there in a few weeks. I can't wait to get going again," Rickelton said as per TOI
"To play in the same group with Rohit, Pandya and Bumrah is is going to be a great learning curve for me and a hell of an opportunity."
Strategy and appreciation
Rickelton's strategy and praise for MI Cape Town's coach
Rickelton emphasized the importance of staying calm at the crease and making smart decisions under pressure.
He also lauded MI Cape Town's bowling coach, Mitchell McClenaghan, for his invaluable behind-the-scenes contributions.
Speaking further he added, "MI management has been phenomenal this year. Especially Mitch who is heavily under noticed but the stuff he is doing behind the scenes, the plans, the amount of cricket he watches, he is a proper student of the game."
Numbers
Wicketkeeper batter's T20I and T20 stats
In 13 T20Is, Rickelton has amassed 263 runs at an average of 20.23, with an impressive strike rate of 134.87.
He also owns one fifty and a high score of 76, (vs Ireland).
Meanwhile, according to ESPNcricinfo, the wicketkeeper batter owns a whopping 3,047 runs across 115 matches (109 innings).
He has also managed an average of 29.87 alongside an impressive strike rate of 141.32. Rickelton has also smashed one ton and 20 fifties, including a high score of 103*.