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Tag: Mumbai Indians

  • Harshal Patel, AB de Villiers help Royal Challengers Bangalore pip Mumbai Indians by two wickets

    If a five-wicket haul was the cake Harshal Patel ordered for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on a very humid Friday evening in Chennai, the young man capped it with a cherry by hitting the winning runs to help his side chase 159-9 set by the Mumbai Indians in the first innings.

    The inaugural game of the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) 14th edition began on that very frenetic note it’s become popular for, going all the way to the wire and concluding on the final ball. The defending champions eventually lost by two wickets.
    It was a two-paced wicket that awaited both teams at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. Much in contrast to the curator’s forecast, where he had talked of having used black soil instead of red that would not give spinners the traditional support, MI struggled against quality mediumpace – especially Harshal Patel’s fivewicket haul and Mohammed Siraj’s wicketless but economical spell – before limping to 159-9 in 20 overs.

  • ‘Mr 360’ lights up IPL opener as RCB beat defending champions Mumbai Indians

    By PTI
    CHENNAI: AB de Villiers rolled back the years with his beautiful yet brutal assault as Royal Challengers Bangalore pipped defending champions Mumbai Indians by two wickets in a last-ball thriller in the Indian Premier League opener here on Friday.

    De Villiers smashed 48 off 27 balls after RCB were down in the dumps at 106 for 5.

    Harshal Patel capped off his dream day by scraping a single off the final delivery to reach the target of 160 in 20 overs. Haryana’s Harshal, an eternal peripheral presence in the IPL, finally had his night under the lights with 5 for 27, which helped RCB restrict MI to 159 for nine.

    MI again lost the first match as has been the tradition in the IPL but they lost it to de Villiers, who changed the script in a space of two overs by attacking the two MI spinners Rahul Chahar (0/43) and Krunal Pandya (1/25).

    His attack prompted Rohit Sharma to finish his best bowler Jasprit Bumrah’s spell (2/26 in 4 overs) before the final over, from which seven runs were required.

    RCB were in control when Glenn Maxwell (39 off 28 balls) came in and upset leg-spinner Chahar’s line with a reverse-pull boundary. He repeated the shot off the same bowler for a six and got another maximum off Krunal Pandya over long-on.

    Skipper Virat Kohli (33 off 29 balls), who had launched into an experienced Marco Jansen in his first over, got a bit bogged down as the innings progressed.

    However, Maxwell’s attack meant that Kohli could take his time.

    ALSO READ | Winning the championship is important, not the first game: Rohit Sharma

    It was MI’s strike bowler Bumrah, who came back for his second spell at the back-10 and removed the Indian captain with an angular delivery. If that wasn’t enough, Jansen, the 6 feet 8 inch youngster, banged one short that ended Maxwell’s potentially dangerous innings as the ‘Big Show’ once again promised a lot but delivered little.

    After Jansen removed Shahbaz Ahmed, de Villiers announced his arrival with a six and a boundary off Chahar.

    Earlier, Harshal produced a death over masterclass, which kept the MI total under check.

    He picked up three wickets in his final over for a run and also became the first bowler to pick up a five-wicket haul against Mumbai Indians.

    Reserve opener Chris Lynn (49 off 35 balls) partially made amends for his part in a horrible mix-up that led to skipper Rohit Sharma’s (19 off 15 balls) run-out, by adding 70 runs in seven overs for second wicket with Suryakumar Yadav (31 off 23 balls).

    That stand was the platform that MI needed to fire during the back-end.

    Fresh from his exploits for India, Ishan Kishan blazed his way to 28 off 19 balls but Harshal got a few wickets in the final over to prevent MI from inflicting bigger damage.

    On a Chepauk track where a good score is anything in the region of 150, the total was certainly par for the course.

    ALSO READ | Harshal Patel got bowling clarity that a captain would want says Virat Kohli 

    Kyle Jamieson (1/27 in 4 overs) had an impressive IPL debut with his disconcerting bounce but the seasoned Yuzvendra Chahal (0/41 in 4 overs) has clearly lost his bearings for some time now. ut Harshal, Chahal’s Haryana teammate made it up with some accurate wicket-to-wicket bowling in the 18th and 20th over.

    Lynn, who looked shaky during the first few overs, stepped out to loft Chahal for a six over long-on and another over wide of long-on off left arm spinner Shahbaz Ahmed to get his rhythm back.

    This was after he called Rohit for a non-existent single and then sent him back, only to find the skipper yards short of his ground.

    Suryakumar (31 off 23 balls), at the other end, took off from where he left against England as he clipped Jamieson for a boundary, punched Chahal through covers off the back foot and then back-cut Dan Christian for another four.

    The pitch that looked slow during the first four overs went out of the equation as runs came at a fair clip.

    Brief scores: Mumbai Indians: 159/9 in 20 overs (Chris Lynn 49, Suryakumar Yadav 31; Harshal Patel 5/27)Royal Challengers Bangalore: 160/8 in 20 overs (AB de Villiers 48, Virat Kohli 33, Glenn Maxwell 39; Marco Jansen 2/28, Jasprit Bumrah 2/26).

  • Winning the championship is important, not the first game: MI’s Rohit Sharma

    By PTI
    CHENNAI: Mumbai Indians captain Rohit wouldn’t mind losing another opening game as long as his team goes on to win the tournament, but admitted that they were 20 runs short against RCB in the season-opener at Chennai.

    “Winning the championship is important, I guess, not the first game. It was a great fight and we didn’t let it go easily. Although the score wasn’t something we were happy with. We were 20 short,” Rohit said.

    “We made some mistakes, those are bound to happen. We need to move on. When you look at the situation with four overs left they had AB and Christian, that’s why we went with Bumrah and Boult to try and get them out.

    “Definitely not an easy pitch to bat on, the oddball was gripping,” he said.

    The MI captain was all praise for de Villiers.

    “De Villiers batted really well and got them home. We haven’t had much time together as a group and it was totally opposite in Dubai, where we began preparations a month before,” Rohit said.

    MATCH REPORT: ‘Mr 360’ lights up IPL opener as RCB beat defending champions Mumbai Indians

    The MI skipper didn’t want to give any excuses for the defeat.

    “…But that’s how the IPL has been played over the years, you just got to get in the game as quickly as possible. It can be difficult for teams that have great home records, but that is what sport is, you’ve got to go away and win. We are fortunate that we’re even on the park.”

    De Villiers, whose exploits won the game for RCB, was also very pleased with his effort.

    “It was an incredible game of cricket, always seems to be against Mumbai. We obviously came in knowing it wasn’t going to be easy. I knew halfway it was going to get tough, it’s one of those pitches that gets harder as the game goes on,” de Villiers said.

    South African AB de Villiers rolled back the years with his beautiful yet brutal assault as Royal Challengers Bangalore pipped defending champions Mumbai Indians by two wickets in a last-ball thriller in the Indian Premier League opener here on Friday.

    De Villiers smashed 48 off 27 balls after RCB were down in the dumps at 106 for 5.

     

  • IPL opener: Harshal Patel becomes first bowler to take fifer against Mumbai Indians

    By ANI
    CHENNAI: Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) Harshal Patel on Friday became the first-ever bowler to take a five-wicket haul against Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

    Harshal achieved the feat in the opening match of this year’s cash-rich league here at MA Chidambaram Stadium on Friday.

    The 30-year-old bowler picked three wickets in the final over of the Mumbai Indians’ innings to restrict the side to 159/9 in the allotted 20 overs.

    Harshal dismissed Krunal Pandya, Marco Jansen, and Kieron Pollard in the final over after sending Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya back to the pavilion in the 18th and 16th over respectively.

    In the IPL 2021 opener, after being asked to bat first, Mumbai Indians got off to a good start with Rohit Sharma and Chris Lynn scoring regular boundaries. However, the duo only managed to form a 24-run partnership as Rohit (19) got run out in the fourth over.

    Suryakumar Yadav then came out to bat and played brilliantly along with Lynn. Both played with an aggressive mindset and took the team’s score to 86/1 after the completion of 10 overs.

    In the 11th over, Kyle Jamieson put an end to their impressive 70-run partnership as the pacer dismissed Suryakumar (31). Soon after that, Washington Sundar caught and bowled Lynn, who missed his half-century by one run.

    Ishan and Hardik then came out in the middle. However, this partnership also did not last long as Harshal removed Hardik (13) in the 16th over, bringing Pollard on the field.

    RCB bowlers continued their sublime bowling performance and did not allow Mumbai Indians batters to settle.

    Kishan (28) too was sent back to the pavilion in the 18th over by Harshal. Krunal then joined Pollard and the duo took the team’s score over the 150-run mark in the 19th over.

    Harshal bowled the final over of the innings and dismissed Krunal and Pollard on the first two deliveries. Harshal then bowled Marco Jansen and Jasprit Bumrah got run out on the final delivery of the over. (ANI)

  • At least we’re getting to do what we like, says Rohit Sharma on bio-bubble life 

    By ANI
    CHENNAI: While many cricketers have talked about how difficult life becomes inside the bio-secure environment, Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma on Thursday spoke about the positives which a player can take while he is in the bubble amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The IPL 2021 will commence on Friday with Mumbai Indians locking horns against Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

    And Rohit is happy that he is getting to play cricket which is the only thing matters for him at the end of the day.

    “A lot of people are going through hard times, a lot of people are not able to work. Not able to do what they like to. At least we’re lucky that we’re getting to do what we like. But I am happy playing cricket which is what I love at the end of the day,” said Rohit in the video posted on Mumbai Indians’ Twitter handle.

    The 32-year-old also pointed out how bubble life helped him create good memories during the 13th edition of the cash-rich league which wasn’t the case before the pandemic grappled the entire world.

    “If we have to adjust, we have to adjust. And try and see how you can get the best out of this bubble life as well. Like we’ve had some good times in the bubble. Especially during the IPL in the UAE, we had some solid memories that we created in the UAE,” said Rohit.

    “Plus the bubble life in Australia and now in India, when we played against England, it was good. We got to know a lot of players, who usually don’t come out of their room,” he further said on the eve of the IPL opener.

    “So we had the team room, where we used to go out and chill. Where we used to go out and chill and talk about a lot of stuff, which was always nice. Which is something I feel has changed from the previous year. It’s nice to have the company around and have that bonding going,” Rohit signed off. 

  • IPL 2021 SWOT analysis: Five-time champions Mumbai Indians eye encore but some spin worries in way

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: A batting line-up dotted with power-hitters coupled with a solid pack of death bowlers make five-time champions Mumbai Indians a formidable unit in the upcoming IPL.

    But the absence of quality spinners could hurt them in pursuit of a hat-trick of title wins.

    Here is a look at what works and what doesn’t for the outfit led by Rohit Sharma, which opens its campaign by taking on Royal Challengers Bangalore in Chennai on April 9.

    STRENGTHS:

    After lifting the trophy in 2019, Mumbai once again won in 2020 when the lucrative league was shifted to UAE due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The win was built on the team’s strength — their core has remained the same over the years and this is one of the biggest reasons for the side’s dominant run.

    MI’s batting is their biggest strength and they possess a solid opening duo in the form of skipper Rohit Sharma and South African Quinton De Kock, and if needed, have an option in Australian hard-hitting batsman Chris Lynn.

    The ever-improving Suryakumar Yadav, young Ishan Kishan, both of whom starred on their India debuts, the Pandya brothers — all-rounders Hardik and Krunal — and West Indian Kieron Pollard, make for a very strong middle-order.

    On the fast bowling front, the team possesses one of the finest in Jasprit Bumrah, and the India pacer would be raring to go once again after a break from the game.

    Last season’s new addition, New Zealand’s Trent Boult proved his worth by taking wickets in the powerplay, including in the big final.

    Add Australia’s Nathan Coulter-Nile to the mix and it becomes a superb pace attack.

    WEAKNESSES:

    Their problems could lie in the spin department, which is a bit light, especially on Chennai’s Chepauk track.

    Lack of a wicket-taking spinner could hurt the Mumbai Indians’ prospects.

    With Lasith Malinga bidding adieu to franchise cricket, MI have been left to fill up a huge void.

    Left-arm spinner Krunal, who was taken to the cleaners by the visiting England side in the ODI series, is more of a restrictive option and there is Rahul Chahar, one of the finds of the IPL.

    Off-spinner Jayant Yadav played only two matches in the last season and it remains to be seen how many games he will get this time around.

    Mumbai have roped in experienced leg-spinner Piyush Chawla, but if the team persists with Krunal and Chahar, he could end up warming the benches.

    Chawla, for the record, has 156 wickets in the IPL, the third highest for any bowler in the league’s history.

    Mumbai have a strong A side but don’t have enough replacements for each slot and have relatively young players as their bench strength.

    OPPORTUNITY:

    Given that all of Mumbai middle-order batters are big-hitters, this could give the side an advantage over others, especially while chasing big totals at places like Chennai and Bengaluru.

    THREAT:

    All this might ensure that Pollard will have to contribute with the ball too, and play the role of the fifth or the sixth bowler, depending on the playing XI that is fielded.

    Pollard, who has been with Mumbai Indians for a considerable amount of time, is their second highest run-scorer (3,023 runs) after Rohit Sharma (5,230 runs) and has grabbed 60 wickets.

    Pollard has also smashed 198 sixes and is the second highest for his franchise after Rohit, who has hit 213 sixes.

    The opponents could fancy their chances but MI definitely have the team to go for a sixth title and third on the row.

    Squad:

    Rohit Sharma (Captain), Adam Milne, Aditya Tare, Anmolpreet Singh, Anukul Roy, Arjun Tendulkar, Chris Lynn, Dhawal Kulkarni, Hardik Pandya, Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), James Neesham, Jasprit Bumrah, Jayant Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Marco Jansen, Mohsin Khan, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Piyush Chawla, Quinton De Kock (wicket-keeper), Rahul Chahar, Saurabh Tiwary, Suryakumar Yadav, Trent Boult, Yudhvir Singh.

    Mahela Jayawardene (Head Coach).

  • Jasprit Bumrah gets down to physical training for IPL 2021 after wedding break

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: Mumbai Indians pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah has got down to physical training after returning from his wedding break, ahead of the upcoming Indian Premier League season, beginning on April 9.

    Bumrah, who is currently serving the seven-day mandatory quarantine, was seen lifting weight inside his team hotel room in the picture uploaded by him on Twitter.

    “Quarantining and getting those reps in,” he wrote.

    Quarantining and getting those reps in pic.twitter.com/FZZeNEei5K
    — Jasprit Bumrah (@Jaspritbumrah93) March 30, 2021

    The 27-year-old Bumrah missed the final two Tests and the whole of the white-ball leg of the series against England as he had taken leave for his marriage on March 15.

    MI skipper and India limited overs vice-captain Rohit Sharma, all-rounder Hardik Pandya, his brother Krunal and Suryakumar Yadav on Monday joined the squad at the team hotel.

    The four players were on national duty for the ODI series against England, which India won 2-1 after defeating the tourists by seven runs in the third match in Pune on Sunday.

  • Mumbai Indians beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by 5 wickets – as it happened

    The Mumbai Indians’ batting power subdued some fine bowling by the Royal Challengers Bangalore to emerge victors by five wickets in the IPL 2020 game in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday night. Chasing 165 for a win, Mumbai’s charge was neutralised by the fall of two wickets which brought Bangalore back into the game. But Suryakumar Yadav (79 runs off 43 balls) played a knock filled with sublime strokes to take Mumbai home.

    Earlier, Bangalore blazed away in the powerplay only to squander the good start of 71 provided by Devdutt Padikkal (74 off 45) and Josh Philippe (33 off 24). They finished with 164/6, at least 20 runs short. That was mainly due to a collapse triggered by a Bumrah double strike in a maiden over.