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The batters played a significant role at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai on Sunday, April 7, 2024, as the Mumbai Indians posted their highest total at the venue.
There were no half-centuries from their batters, yet MI posted a tough 234 for 5 in their 20 overs after a late onslaught by Romario Shepherd and Tim David. The DC batters put on a fight but fell 29 runs short.
The best batters from the match...
Rohit Sharma
After being put into bat on a flat deck, MI couldn't have expected a better start. Rohit got off to a flyer and went after the DC bowling from the get go. He clobbered Ishant Sharma for back-to-back fours in the second over to start his assault.
He then sent Jhye Richardson for back-to-back sixes before hammering offie Lalit Yadav for 15 runs in the over. He smashed the bowling to all sides of the park and helped MI gain early impetus as they reached 75 in the oPwerplay overs.
Rohit was bowled by Axar Patel in the next over for 49 off 27 (6 fours and 3 sixes) but not before laying the foundation for MI's massive total.
Ishan Kishan
MI's other opener was also in an aggressive mood as he complemented Rohit well. When Rohit was taking down the bowling at one end, Kishan punished the bad balls that came his way while also making the singles and twos count.
Although he slowed down relatively after the wickets of Rohit and Suryakumar Yadav, he sent Anrich Nortje and Axar for two maximums before he was caught and bowled by Axar, who plucked a catch out of thin air. Kishan walked back for 42 off 23 balls.
Tim Davi
David came in to bat in the 13th over with Hardik Pandya at the other end and four batters in the hut. The scoring rate had dropped after Kishan's wicket and with the wicket slowing down a tab in the middle of the innings, the batters just dealt in singles and twos and the odd boundary for the next three overs.
Khaleel Ahmed was then clobbered for a six by David before the big Aussie smoked Nortje and Ishant for a couple of boundaries and a couple of sixes as the 18th and 19th overs produced 35 runs, setting the stage for the final over onslaught by Romario Shepherd.
David loves the Wankhede -- in 11 innings he has scored 288 runs at a strike rate of 196!
Romario Shepherd
The West Indies all-rounder has made a name for himself as a T20 specialist, especially with performances in the Caribbean Premier League. But DC and their fans would have had no idea of what was coming in the final over of MI's innings.
With the scoreboard reading 202 for 5 in 19 overs, Shepherd, who had faced just 4 deliveries up till then, gave Nortje a nightmare he never would have imagined.
Shepherd went down the ground, across his stumps, and just used his brute force and send the ball into the crowds as he pummelled the bowler for 4 sixes and 2 fours and score 32 runs in the final over to propel Mumbai to their match-winning total.
Prithvi Shaw
Shaw has shown glimpses of his fine batting prowess this season but often came a cropper. On Sunday he showed why DC Coach Ricky Ponting has his faith in him as he gave Delhi a good start even after losing opening partner David Warner cheaply.
Shaw found the boundaries at will, his shots immaculate and crisp. Nothing risky or ugly. He was severe on the spinners as well as pacers -- he took on Piyush Chawla in the 8th over, slogging him for a six and then hitting back to back fours to get 16 off the over.
He then brought up his 50 with a four off Gerald Coetzee. Shaw's presence in the middle kept DC in the game but his dismissal to Jasprit Bumrah tilted the match in MI's favour.
Abhishek Porel
Porel put on a good fight alongside Shaw.
He dealt in singles while Shaw was on the attack at the other end. He did find the occasional boundary and was dropped on 31. After Shaw's dismissal he lowered his gears, leaving Tristan Stubbs to do all the heavy lifting. He was eventually dismissed by Bumrah for 41 off 31, his innings inclusive of 5 fours.
Tristan Stubbs
Stubbs came in at the fall of Shaw's wicket and started his innings by smashing Chawla for two massive sixes. The run rate demanded that DC take on the bowling and while Porel and later Pant struggled at one end, Stubbs was creaming the fours and the sixes.
The 23-year-old Stubbs put on a display of effortless strokes and tried to release the pressure off DC. He completed his fifty off just 19 deliveries and shifted gears through his innings as the required rate kept mounting.
His single-handed effort was never going to be enough but he kept on fighting till the very end to stay unbeaten on 71 off 25, hitting 3 fours and 7 towering sixes!
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