He has been brilliant for Mumbai Indians.
The pace-hitters are arduous in the Indian circuit, but the Mumbai Indians (MI) have one of the finest in this department in the form of Naman Dhir. Many might not have noticed, but Dhir has aced an uncharacteristic role for the five-time champions by batting in the lower order.
Naturally, he is a top-order batter who is equally adept against spinners and can play big knocks. However, MI already have a cramped top and middle order, which has forced Dhir to go lower in the batting setup, but he has adapted magnificently and been one of their most impressive performers since 2024.
No wonder he has been rewarded for nailing a tricky role and appointed the vice-captain of the India A squad for the Rising Stars Asia Cup. In a team full of several IPL stars, Naman has already proved his credentials as a captain, for he was Punjab’s captain in the initial couple of Ranji Trophy rounds.
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Now, the Rising Stars Asia Cup will give him a chance to showcase his hard-hitting ability against decent bowling attacks to boost his India selection chances. Maybe the T20I side looks settled as of now, but Dhir brings a dimension few other Indian batters do, which will definitely keep him in contention for the T20 World Cup 2026.
Currently, India have consistently been trying Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube in the lower middle order, but both can have issues against high pace. They have Rinku Singh as a bona fide pace-hitter, but he doesn’t offer enough bowling value, so he doesn’t get enough chances.
Since 2024, Naman Dhir has had a strike rate of 188.63 and a balls-per-boundary ratio of 3.45 against pacers in IPL. Moreover, he can be flexible with his batting position and promoted to counter defensive spinners in the middle overs, as his strike rate of 146.34 suggests.
Additionally, he also offers a higher bowling value than Rinku and has consistently been improving in this department. Recently, Dhir bowled ample overs for Punjab in the Ranji Trophy and boasts a five-wicket haul in T20s, suggesting he is more than capable as an off-spinner.
The current management has consistently opted for multi-value players, and Naman Dhir surely fits in that area, even if MI haven’t used his bowling enough. Hardik and Dube have been decent, but teams with attacking and high-speed pacers can contain them, and India might require a proven pace-hitter below in the T20 World Cup 2026, so Dhir can fill that void.
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