Till this season, no team had ever chased more than 200 to win an IPL game at the Wankhede Stadium. Mumbai finally shattered that ceiling against Rajasthan nine days ago. That match went to the final over though. Here, after being set 200 to win, they romped home with 21 balls remaining. The best economy rate among Bangalore’s bowlers? Mohammed Siraj’s 10.33. Ouch. Here are our takeaways from a game that left Mumbai in control of their play-off destiny.
SKY reminds RCB of what they used to have
For a decade, AB de Villiers enthralled Bangalore fans with his ability to play strokes all around the wicket. Mr. 360 wasn’t just some glib marketing gimmick, but a reflection of his extraordinary shot-making skill. With de Villiers now retired, the Bangalore camp could only look on wistfully, and perhaps a little enviously, as Suryakumar Yadav deflected, cut and clubbed the ball pretty much wherever he wanted to. It didn’t matter whether it was Harshal Patel’s attempted slower balls, or Wanindu Hasaranga’s leg-spin. Everything disappeared. Despite the target being an imposing 200, SKY was in no hurry at the start. Off the first 17 balls he faced, he scored 25. From the next 18, he made 58. By the time he was caught in the deep, most of the Bangalore players must have been giddy from craning their necks to watch ball after ball disappearing into the stands.
Wadhera’s redemption
Nehal Wadhera’s evening got off to the worst possible start. The fourth ball of the Bangalore innings, and Faf du Plessis’s flick off a Jason Behrendorff full toss burst through his hands at midwicket. Rohit Sharma’s expression spoke volumes. It didn’t help that du Plessis made 65, sharing a partnership of 120 with Glenn Maxwell. But Wadhera is no ordinary talent. Before this IPL, he hadn’t even played a T20 game. Sent in at No.4 after Hasaranga had taken two wickets in an over, he showed plenty of intent from the start, allowing SKY to play himself in. Once the senior man was set, Wadhera happily played second fiddle. Their 140-run stand, from just 66 balls, killed the contest, and it was perhaps fitting that Wadhera brought up his second successive half-century, and the winning runs, with a sensational six over extra-cover. You get the feeling that there will be a few more.
Behrendorff makes his point
A 75-lakh buy for Bangalore at the 2022 IPL auction, Jason Behrendorff didn’t get a game before he was released. With only four foreign players allowed in the XI, he just didn’t fit into the team’s strategy. Bought at the same price by Mumbai before this season, he played six games before being relegated to the bench. But for Jofra Archer heading home after yet another flare-up of his elbow issues, Behrendorff probably wouldn’t have played tonight. Faced with his old teammates though, he made sure he left an impact. The wickets of Virat Kohli, Anuj Rawat and, crucially, Maxwell, were a reminder of just how awkward tall, left-arm quicks can be when the rhythm is right. But for the Maxwell wicket, Mumbai may well have been chasing 240.
Bangalore lack staying power
When Maxwell and du Plessis were rattling along at close to 12 runs an over, a monstrous total looked likely. But once Maxwell was caught in the deep off Behrendorff, Bangalore could add only 63 from the last 45 deliveries. Only one of the last eight overs went for more than 10 runs. In a tournament where teams have routinely been smashing over 60 runs in the last five overs, Bangalore’s finish was more tortoise than hare. With Mumbai’s batting depth and power, a target of 200 was never going to be enough.
Madhwal shows his temperament
Akash Madhwal is 29, and plays for Uttarakhand, not one of Indian cricket’s powerhouse states. When he disappeared for 17 in his first over, you assumed that would be the end of his night. But Rohit hasn’t won five IPL titles as captain by being predictable. In what was the ultimate show of faith, he entrusted Madhwal with the final over. Bangalore managed just six off it, summing up how their innings had fizzled out. Madhwal mixed up his pace and landed his yorkers, more than earning the pats on the back he received as the team walked off the field.