Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya has had little to celebrate in this Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 campaign. With the franchise at 9th place in the 10-team points table and the chances of qualifying for the play-offs only mathematically possible, it is a season to forget for Hardik and his team. But the win over the high-flying Sunrisers Hyderabad team on Monday gave Hardik and his teammates a moment of joy, with the home side securing a seven-wicket win in Wankhede. More than MI's victory, the win brought a sense of relief to Indian cricket fans as Hardik finally seemed to have regained his form as a bowler.
Hardik did not get an batting in the match but picked up 3 wickets for 31 runs in his quota of four overs. After Hardik dismissed SRH batsman Shahbaz Ahmed, even Rohit came up to him and gave a big pat on the back, acknowledging the skipper's success as a bowler.
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Great patrolling the ropes
Suryakumar Yadav backs his skipper and team with a fine catch
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The win lifted Mumbai Indians from 10th to 9th in the points table, although their chances of making the play-offs still remain quite slim.
After the match, Hardik stressed the need to do the right things in the rest of the campaign as MI are unlikely to finish in the top four.
“We want to concentrate on playing good cricket, still think we gave an extra 10-15 runs. The way our batters batted, that was excellent. My bowling, I like to bowl in the right areas, I bowl depending of the situation. Bowled in the right areas today and it worked as if Chawla had to bowl from the short side.
“He (Chawla) had to be accurate, the margin of error has become smaller for the bowlers these days. It's unbelievable, SKY's best history is when he puts pressure on the bowlers. It's pure confidence, his game has changed, is one of the best hitters. He can change a game in a different way, and luckily we have him (SKY) on our side,” he said.
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