Krunal confirms instructions to attack

Krunal Pandya's attacking 86 that gave Mumbai Indians a big victory against Delhi Daredevils on Sunday was facilitated by clear instructions 'to go out there and play my shots'.

Krunal Pandya's attack gave Mumbai Indians a commanding (and eventually sufficient) total of 206 for 4 in its 20 overs.

After demolishing Delhi Daredevils on Sunday night, Mumbai Indians’ Krunal Pandya said he had clear instructions to go after the spinners.

"Martin Guptill’s presence was definitely important. Since I had played two matches here before, I knew the conditions. The ball was gripping and not coming easily on to the bat," said the promising allrounder.

> Report: Krunal's all-round show gives MI 80-run win

Heaping praise on coach Ricky Ponting, the hit-man said, "He is a confidence-boosting coach. He has always backed each and every player whether we are doing good or bad."

On Martin Guptill’s strike-rate of 130 and his own 230, Pandya said, "Actually that was the plan. The wicket needed one batsman to play till the 15th or 16th over and lay the foundation for the others. My job was clear, to go there and play my shots."

On takeaways from the IPL, he said, "I’ve gained a lot from sharing the dressing room with Harbhajan Singh, Rohit Sharma and coaches such as Shane Bond, Ricky Ponting and Jonty Rhodes.

Daredevils on the back foot

Daredevils’ Zaheer Khan was introspective on the spinners proving expensive. "I think the left-right combination kind of helped them. When someone plays an innings like that, Pandya just put the pressure back on us. The important thing for them was the start they got. I think Rohit [Sharma] played a good innings. To take on spinners in the first over itself kind of put us on the back foot.

Whether bowlers could have been shuffled better, he replied, "When you are playing three spinners, the idea was to use them in the middle overs. Chris Morris and I have been bowling at the back-end, so that was the plan. In fact I came back to bowl the 15th over I think, so that was still early for me to come back.

"The important thing was the partnership in the middle. We were hoping that our spinners would put the brakes. Our bowling unit right throughout the tournament has been fantastic. This kind of thing happens. It was an off-day for the bowling unit. It's just about regrouping and going ahead. We still have three games to go and we have to win two to qualify."