After losing their first three games in a row, the defending champions Mumbai Indians finally tasted success for the first time in the 11th edition of the Indian Premier league on Tuesday (April 17) when they defeated the Royal Challengers Bangalore by 46 runs. At the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, after having lost their 4th consecutive toss, the MI were asked to have a bat first and had a horror start when Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan were dismissed in the first 2 balls of the match by Umesh Yadav who bowled a terrific opening spell.
However, Player of the Match Rohit Sharma and Evin Lewis came to Mumbai Indian’s rescue and added a 108 runs for the 3rd wicket. In the beginning Evin Lewis took the charge and led Mumabi’s counter attack allowing the skipper to take his time. But when Rohit got his eye in, it was the Hitman Show at the Wankhede Stadium.
On his way to 94, there were the elegant drives, the master pulls, the swift cuts, and all of that with great timing and ease. His innings included 10 fours and 5 sixes and helped Mumbai make 213 runs for the loss of six wickets. MI’s total was efficiently defended by the bowlers, while Krunal Pandya picked up 3 wickets, Mayank Markande and Jasprit Bumrah chipped in with 2 each.
Virat Kohli played a lone hand in RCB’s chase, remaining unbeaten on 92. By the time Virat decided to fire all cylinders the required run rate had already shot up around 17-20 runs an overs and it was virtually impossible, since Kohli got no support from the other end. Much of Kohli’s masterclass came in an attempt to have a better net run rate.
This was Mumbai's first win in 4 games and RCB's third defeat in as many games. However, a better run rate means the Mumbai Indians are now number 6 on the points tally.
