Gujarat Titans jump to second spot after clinical win
Defending champions Gujarat Titans handed five-time champions Mumbai Indians a thumping defeat, courtesy a violent death-over assault by Abhinav Manohar and David Miller, and a spin demolition of the Mumbai batting, led by the excellent Noor Ahmed and Rashid Khan.
Gill lays the platform despite top-order failure
After a difficult end to his spell in the last game, Arjun Tendulkar made a strong return, picking up the wicket of Wriddhiman Saha, and giving away only nine runs in the powerplay. Hardik Pandya perished first ball after the powerplay too. However, it was Shubman Gill who kept the momentum going, taking on Cameron Green in the last over of the powerplay, smashing two fours and a six, carting his way to a brisk and beautiful fifty…
A brief lull, and the Miller-Manohar surge
When Kumar Kartikeya got rid of Shubman Gill, and Piyush Chawla got Vijay Shankar soon after, there was a brief lull before a 35-ball assault by David Miller and Abhinav Manohar. It started with a Piyush Chawla over, that was taken for 17 runs (his previous three overs had gone for a total of 17), after which, every bowler was under attack. No one was spared, as the pair clubbed the Mumbai bowling attack for 71 runs in 35 balls, with captain Rohit Sharma looking thoroughly out of his depth.
To add to their woes, after the dismissal of Manohar, Tewatia joined the party, hitting three of his first four balls out of the park. A deflated Mumbai attack walked off the field, as Gujarat massacred 94 runs in the last 6 overs, creating their own version of the powerplay.
A slow start to a tall chase
Much like the Mumbai Indians’ campaign, which hasn’t started with a win in almost a decade, the chase began rather slowly, with Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan struggling to find their timing against the pacers, Mohammed Shami and Hardik Pandya. Rohit Sharma offered a return catch to his counterpart, Hardik Pandya, resulting in a soft dismissal, bringing Cameron Green to the crease. Surely, a surge was on its way…
The momentum that never came for Mumbai
The Mumbai Indians were 29-1 at the end of the powerplay, with Cam Green and Ishan Kishan, both struggling to time the ball, and as the pressure grew, they now had to take on the well-nigh unhittable Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad. What happened next was inevitable — a middle-order collapse ensued, with Rashid Khan getting two wickets in an over (Ishan Kishan and Tilak Varma) and Noor Ahmad getting two in an over too (Cam Green and Tim David). From 43-1 to 59-5, the collapse read 4-16, but it was a lot worse, because the Mumbai Indians were not even close to matching the required rate. It was all downhill from here.
The consolation and the anticlimax
Once Suryakumar Yadav was dismissed by Noor Ahmad, who picked up his third scalp, it seemed to be all too late for Mumbai. And it was, make no mistake. However, Nehal Wadhera and Piyush Chawla did put on 45 runs in 25 balls to bring some consolation to an otherwise glum dressing room. Even Arjun Tendulkar got a bat today, and even smashed a six off Mohit Sharma, but only in the final over, with 63 to win, when Mumbai were staring down the barrel and defeat was a mere formality. After this rather one-sided encounter, the Gujarat Titans have leaped up to second spot, and the Mumbai Indians remain seventh on the points table
Brief Scores: Gujarat Titans 207-6in 20 overs (Shubman Gill 56, David Miller 46, Abhinav Manohar 42, Piyush Chawla 2-34) beat Mumbai Indians 152-9in 20 overs (Nehal Wadhera 40, Cameron Green 33, Noor Ahmad 3-37, Rashid Khan 2-27) by 55 runs
What’s next?
After two deflating defeats, the Mumbai Indians travel back to the Wankhede and face the Rajasthan Royals on Sunday (April 30) in a bid to reclaim their fortress after a loss to Punjab. The Gujarat Titans will now travel to Kolkata to face the Kolkata Knight Riders on Saturday (April 29) and attempt to gain the top spot.
© Cricbuzz
