Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya admitted the target of 207 was gettable but feels CSK bowled well to defend it after their 20-run loss at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on Sunday. The defending champions posted a par score of 206 runs on the board after Pandya won the toss and decided to bowl first.
CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad, who demoted himself to number three, scored a fine knock of 69 off 40 balls with the help of five fours and as many sixes. Furthermore, Shivam Dube continued his rich form, scoring an unbeaten 66 off 38 balls, a knock laden with 10 fours and two maximums.
The finishing touches were given by former CSK skipper MS Dhoni, who smashed a little cameo of 4-ball 20. Dhoni turned back the clock once again, hitting Hardik Pandya for a hat-trick of sixes.
Meanwhile, Mumbai Indians got off to a good start as their openers – Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan – added 63 runs in the Powerplay overs. But CSK bounced back into the contest when Matheesha Pathirana struck twice to dismiss Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav in the eighth over.
MI’s former skipper Rohit Sharma scored an unbeaten 105, his second IPL century, but his efforts went in vain as he didn’t get the support from the other end. Pathirana bowled a fine spell as he returned with impressive figures of 4-28.
Hardik Pandya said in the post-match presentation, “It (target) was definitely gettable, but they bowled pretty well. Pathirana was the difference. They were smart with the plans and their approach. They got the hang of it, there’s a man behind the stumps (Dhoni) who tells them what’s working, that helps. It (pitch) was holding up a bit and getting difficult.”
Pandya added, “It was about batting well and keeping the intent. We were going quite well (in the run chase) till Pathirana came into the attack and took those two wickets. It was about what is best at that time, we could have done something different. I like to play percentage cricket, it would have been difficult for him (Dube) against seamers rather than spin. We are on the road for the next four games, need to play good cricket, need to keep the intensity high.”
Mumbai Indians will next take on Punjab Kings at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium, Mullanpur, Chandigarh on Thursday.
