Prior to their Ranji Trophy Group 'A' opener against Jammu & Kashmir, newly-appointed Mumbai captain Suryakumar Yadav wore a nervous but exciting look. The outcome of that match, however, left him disappointed. On Sunday, the eve of their fifth round match against Madhya Pradesh, the youngster was back to being himself. Brimming with confidence, he walked around the Wankhede with his usual swagger. The change in body language could be attributed to the recent results — a win against Uttar Pradesh in Kanpur and first-innings points against Bengal in Kolkata — that Mumbai achieved. The 40-time champions are in second position on the points table.So high on confidence is this team that even the absence of senior pro Abhishek Nayar (toe injury) is not hurting them. "We are already missing one (senior player) in Wasim (Jaffer). And now, there is no Abhishek. He has been the best character on and off the field. Someone will have to step into those shoes," Yadav said.Mumbai were spared another blow when Siddhesh Lad, who injured his hand in Kolkata, was declared fit for this game. Yadav, coach Praveen Amre and selector Milind Rege had a casual meeting with Lad on the field. "We wanted to sense how he was feeling. And what we git were positive vibes from Lad. He will play," Yadav said.Mumbai haven't had a great time with the bat. The absence of Jaffer has only made things difficult. However, they put up an improved show in the last couple of games. Apart from Yadav, youngsters like Shreyas Iyer and Lad have hit the right notes. Shardul Thakur has shone with ball and bat. With 23 wickets, he tops the bowling charts. "Our batting was a worry. Not anymore. Iyer got a big hundred against Bengal where he expressed himself, playing fearlessly. Lad is in form and then we have Sarfaraz Khan at No. 6," he said. Yadav also praised Thakur, saying, "I would say he has improved a lot. I have known him since we were 17. Two years ago, he was a bit wayward. But he is bowling very well now."Yadav revealed that Aditya Tare and Akhil Herwadkar will continue to open the innings. Javed Khan and Kshemal Waingankar or Wilkin Mota will partner Thakur in the pace department. It will be interesting to see if Mumbai go with one or two spinners. Left-arm spinner Iqbal Abdulla and off-spinner Akshay Girap are in the fray.It will be interesting to see if Madhya Pradesh, who gave Mumbai a tough fight in a close quarterfinal tie in Indore a couple of seasons ago, can trouble them once again. With one defeat, three draws and five points, MP are second from bottom on the points table. They won't have the services of star bowler Ishwar Pandey, who is injured. With the likes of Naman Ojha and Jalaj Saxena (also bowls off-spin) in the line-up, their batting looks good.Playing today: Haryana vs Delhi (Live on Star Sports 2 at 9:20 pm)SquadsMumbai: S Yadav (C), A Tare, S Mangela, S Lad, A Herwadkar, S Iyer, S Shaikh, S Khan, I Abdullah, A Girap, S Thakur, W Mota, B Alam, K Waingankar, J KhanMadhya Pradesh: D Bundela (C), N Ojha (vice-capt, wk), J Saxena, H Bhatia, R Khan, A Sharma, P Datey, S Sharma, S Mishra, A Khan, A Bais, S Jain, A Kushwah, A Shrivastava, Y Rawat, A DaveAlso playingGroup AUttar Pradesh vs Baroda at LucknowBengal vs Tamil Nadu at KolkataKarnataka vs Jammu & Kashmir at HubliGroup BHaryana vs Delhi at RohtakOdisha vs Vidarbha at SambalpurRajasthan vs Punjab at JaipurSaurashtra vs Maharashtra at RajkotAndhra vs Jharkhand at VizianagaramAssam vs Services at GuwahatiGroup CHimachal Pradesh vs Kerala at DharamsalaTripura vs Hyderabad at AgartalaAndhra vs Jharkhand at VizianagaramAssam vs Services at Guwahati

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