Online Reporter
Mumbai Indians’ bowlers are under scrutiny after failing to defend their highest first-innings total in the Indian Premier League on Wednesday but captain Hardik Pandya refused to single them out for blame and said the whole team were accountable.
Five-time champions Mumbai are enduring a wretched season and are ninth in the 10-team standings with just two wins from eight matches.
Their much-vaunted bowling unit, spearheaded by India paceman Jasprit Bumrah, has struggled mightily with conditions in the IPL heavily favouring batsmen.
Mumbai posted 243-5 against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday, only for the visitors to chase it down comfortably in a six-wicket win with eight balls to spare.
Bumrah, widely regarded as the world’s premier fast bowler, went wicketless once again while conceding 54 runs in four overs. He remains stuck on two wickets in eight matches.
Speaking at the post-match presentation, Pandya said there was lots of blame to go around for the defeat.
“I won’t put my bowlers under the bus. I think as an overall unit, we have not been able to do what exactly Mumbai Indians stands for,” he said.
Mumbai, who have used 22 players this season, more than any other side, just needed a slice of luck to turn things around, Pandya added.
“It’s been that kind of season. When you get a couple of chances, you grab them, that’s when luck and momentum changes,” he said.
“If you don’t, it kind of hurts you, but it’s still fine, all the boys tried really well.”
Mumbai next face Chennai Super Kings tomorrow.
Meanwhile, Ryan Rickelton’s magnificent debut Tata IPL hundred was trumped by an explosive unbeaten 65 in 30 balls by fellow South African Heinrich Klaasen as the Sunrisers Hyderabad completed a remarkable record run chase to beat the Mumbai Indians by six wickets with eight balls to spare at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Wednesday night.
The victory pushes Sunrisers up to third on the log but leaves Mumbai with a near-hopeless task of qualifying for the playoffs.
Rickelton was surely entitled to feel confident that Mumbai were halfway to achieving a much-needed victory after his unbeaten 123 in 55 balls (10x4s, 8×6) powered Mumbai to 243 for five after they had won the toss and taken first strike.
Rickelton – who was a late batting substitute for Quinton de Kock hadn’t even known he was playing until De Kock pulled out at the last minute with an injured wrist.
He and Will Jacks (46 in 22 balls) – playing his first match of the tournament for Mumbai – put on 93 in 43 balls for the first wicket.
Rickelton, watched by his mom and dad, then held the innings together with some help from Hardik Pandya (31 off 15 balls) as Mumbai put together the biggest IPL total at the Wankhede Stadium.
For Sunrisers, the impressive Eshan Malinga (1-29 in four overs) and Pat Cummins (0-39) were the only bowlers to have a single-figure economy run-rate.
But in these extraordinary T20 times, when totals exceeding 200 have almost become the norm, that turned out to be not nearly enough.
Sunrisers openers Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma bested the home team’s powerplay total of 78 without loss, scoring 92 and helping to give Mumbai’s great pace bowler, Jasprit Bumrah, something of a black eye as he conceded 54 runs in his four overs -SuperSport.
