On a day a young opener from Mumbai dazzled the crowd for a while on his IPL debut, a veteran from the city returned to big-scoring ways. Teenager Ayush Mhatre made instant impact with a 15-ball 32 for Chennai Super Kings, before Rohit Sharma posted his first half-century in IPL 2025 to help Mumbai Indians to a massive and potentially campaign-turning win.
Chasing 177 to win on a Wankhede Stadium pitch firm for batting, MI were home with plenty to spare, thanks to Rohit’s unbeaten 76 off 45 balls (6×6, 4×4), his solid opening stand with Ryan Rickelton and Suryakumar Yadav’s extravagant 68 not out off 30 (6×5, 4×6). This was after a combined bowling effort led by Jasprit Bumrah (2/25 off 4 overs). A third successive win lifted MI to sixth on the table with eight points from eight games. CSK are at the bottom with four from eight.
Mhatre, who turns 18 in July, had made an impressive debut for Mumbai in first-class and one-day tournaments in the 2024-25 season. Playing his first T20 match of substance as a replacement for the injured Ruturaj Gaikwad, he belted a few cavalier shots. There was pick-up six, a few straight flat-batted swaps and some dashing hits over and through the off-side cordon. However, his 15-ball 32 didn’t provide enough impetus as CSK reached 70/3 after 10 overs.
Ravindra Jadeja (53 not out off 35) and Shivam Dube (50 off 32) provided much-needed momentum to the CSK innings. They were slow in the beginning when they came together at 63/3 after eight overs, but accelerated gradually. The MI bowlers, especially the faster ones, erred at times and conceded runs in a heap. However, Bumrah rose to the occasion and kept things quiet towards the end.
The chase was never going to be tough on a pitch which provided even bounce. Rickelton provided the early fours, Rohit took over and SKY just took it to another level of domination. The MI juggernaut seems to have come alive. They are in with a chance to make it to the playoffs. As for CSK, it seemed to be a sinking act at Marine Drive.