Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma has backed his team to bounce back after they finally registered a win after suffering three losses in the second phase of IPL 2021.
MI won against Punjab Kings by six wickets at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi on Tuesday to get the much-needed win under their belt.
In fact, it has been noticed in the past that Mumbai Indians have bounced back from impossible positions and Rohit is hopeful that it will inspire his team to pick up the confidence after a win against PBKS.
Mumbai has a potent squad and has all the experience under their belt but their middle order hasn’t been to get going. Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan have struggled to get going in the ongoing season, which has led to the downfall of the team.
Meanwhile, Saurabh Tiwary played a crucial knock of 45 runs for the defending champions in the run-chase of 136 against PBKS. Hardik Pandya and Kieron Pollard then added the finishing touches for MI as they scored 40 and 15 runs respectively.
Rohit Sharma was delighted after his team came up with a collective team effort against PBKS and secured their fifth win of the season to keep themselves alive in the playoff race.
Rohit Sharma said in the post-match presentation, “We do agree that we didn’t play to our potential, but it’s a long tournament and we need to stick to our plans and reading the situations is very important and we can take a lot of confidence from that. Important not to lose the guard. The way he (Hardik) understood the situation was very crucial from a team’s perspective, it’s important for him to spend the time in the middle as he’s coming back from an injury. It’s a tough call (on dropping Ishan Kishan) and he seems very confident and the reply you get from him was very boosting as well”.
“Saurabh has played the perfect role today and he’s done well to nudge around in the middle overs. We are gonna back him (Ishan Kishan) as he’s a very important player for us. The ball was coming off when we started off and the grass is coming off the surface in the middle overs and we need to adjust to the conditions. He (Pollard) is one of our key players. A crucial part of MI for so many years. He will be happy with taking the ‘Man of the Match for his bowling performance”.
Mumbai Indians will next face Delhi Capitals on Saturday at Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
