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Synopsis of GT vs MI, IPL 2024: On a night rich in narrative arcs, Hardik Pandya’s return to Ahmedabad as captain of the rival team ended in a dramatic defeat as Mumbai Indians let slip a run-out of 169 from a winning position. Shubman Gill’s Gujarat Titans won a thriller by 6 runs even though the stage was set for a headline-grabbing finish for Hardik.
There were some boos at the delivery, they grew louder when he came in to bowl and conceded a few boundaries in the Powerplay, and became even more definitive after an effort of diving to avoid a boundary. Hardik Pandya’s ‘transfer’ was already seen as a turning point in the league, and has now brought a football atmosphere to the IPL where booing of former players has become a reality.
However, in the end, as an Australian captain once mentioned, he had a chance to silence the Ahmedabad crowd (well, a little, given that there were still plenty of MI fans). Hardik had the bat in his hand and stood confidently at the crease as MI needed 19 off the last over. Umesh Yadav’s first ball was off pace and short, and he was smashed over cover point in his trademark style for six. The second ball also went wide of the stump and was wide for four. He was set to end up on the stand, but Umesh tried a quicker short ball which took space away from Hardik and he was caught at long-on.
Till then, Hardik had managed to control his emotions during a difficult night. But as he walked off the court, he took off his helmet, frustration on the surface, and let out some steam. One defeat doesn’t make a season, especially in MI’s first game, which they are used to. But it was a night of wild emotions for the man in the spotlight.
Credit where the dew is
Seeing Ashish Nehra strolling in the dugout is not new in the IPL. I was perhaps even more lively than usual when MI were attacking the target, but Gujarat have been immensely successful because they have a model that works for them. Even though the outfield looked like a water slide early on with the amount of dew that was accumulating, they did not panic and relied on the quality of their bowling unit at the back.
Chances have been few and far between in the IPL for R Sai Kishore, but he bowled a fantastic spell in the middle (24/1) culminating in the crucial wicket of Rohit Sharma. Rashid Khan’s genius needs no reminder. While his reputation sometimes gets in the way of getting wickets, he is guaranteed to keep things tight (0/23), as he demonstrated with his two miserable overs late in the game that piled up the pressure. about me.
Then, Mohit Sharma and Umesh Yadav, two Indian veterans from the 2015 World Cup team, did their bit at the end. Mohit, “a revelation” since last season, as Gill put it, picked up crucial wickets from Dewald Brevis and Tim David. And Umesh sealed the deal.
“The way the boys stayed calm when the dew came in was outstanding. Especially the way our spinners played was incredible and ensured that we were always in the game,” Gill said after the match. “We just wanted to increase the pressure and wait for them to make mistakes.”
In fact, the errors came from MI’s batsmen despite needing just 43 runs in the last five overs as Gujarat completed a hold-up.
Bumrah’s Song of Ice and Fire
It would be an understatement to say that MI missed Jasprit Bumrah last year. Upon her return to the IPL, the superstar gave a masterclass in T20 bowling as she posted figures of 3/14, conceding just one four in her four-over spell.
The wickets he picked up: Wriddhiman Saha, breaking the opening partnership that had given the Gujarat Titans a good start; David Miller, one of the most dangerous finishers in the T20 game; Sai Sudharsan, well placed in the middle but came in from the same side as Miller. The three layoffs played a major role in reducing GT’s potential total.
Two of those three wickets summed up Bumrah, the T20 genius. After mixing long balls and slower deliveries in his first over of the night to Saha, he hit the perfect yorker that the batsman had no hope of avoiding. You know he will arrive at some point, and yet you feel helpless when he arrives. He is hot.
Then, back to bowling at the death, where he may have no rival in the game, Bumrah displayed a classic. As good as his yorkers are, Bumrah’s slower deliveries are in a bowling genre of their own. The same action, the same wrist position until the last moment and yet an alarming drop in rhythm. Miller, like Shaun Marsh, Ollie Robinson and many more before him, broke down and ended up looping halfway through. He is frozen.
When in the zone, Bumrah sings a Song of Ice and Fire alone. However, his night watch had to end with bat in hand when MI needed 9 off 2 balls.