Former India pace bowler Vinay Kumar has joined defending Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Mumbai Indians as a talent scout. The Karnataka mainstay was a part of MI's winning campaigns during the 2015 and 2017 seasons. Vinay made his Indian Premier League debut in 2008, and ended up with 105 wickets. Vinay, who led Karnataka to a couple of Ranji Trophy titles, was a consistent performer in the domestic circuit, finishing with 442 scalps in the Ranji. He also went on to play 41 internationals for his country. Vinay announced his retirement from first-class and international cricket in February this year.
"I am delighted to have Vinay join our talent scout program. Mumbai Indians is established on strong fundamentals of discovering talent and belief in nurturing youth. I am confident Vinay will add value to our ideology and scouting strength," Akash Ambani, owner of MI, said."I am honoured for this opportunity to associate with Mumbai Indians again. Mumbai Indians strive for excellence in every aspect of the game, and scouting talents is undoubtedly their key strength. It's a new chapter, and personally I reckon it as an opportunity for me to give back to cricket," Vinay said. Earlier, Parthiv Patel, former India wicketkeeper-batsman, also joined the MI set-up as talent scout. Vinay Kumar has played in IPL for a couple of teams including Royal Challengers Bangalore, Kolkata Knight Riders and Kochi Tuskers Kerala.
