The last few weeks were difficult for Mumbai Indians. The five-time Indian Premier League champion side lost the first eight games, and the pressure was mounting on the players and obviously on the team management.
So, when the team registered its first win of the season at the DY Patil Stadium against Rajasthan Royals on Saturday, the dugout looked happy and relieved. As the fans celebrated the team’s victory, the two batting mainstays of Mumbai Indians - Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan - admitted that this win “will spread a lot of positivity” going forward.
This has been an incredibly challenging season for the league’s most successful franchise, and for obvious reasons. There have been criticisms about its picks in the mega auction, questions have been raised on the new bowlers failing to emerge as match-winners and also, the poor form of captain Rohit Sharma has been under scrutiny.
While its hopes of making it to the playoffs are all but over, the camp believes that after a good, collective performance, the team will be able to finish the tournament on a high.
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Against a formidable Rajasthan Royals bowling line-up, Suryakumar not only scored a half-century, but also forged a 81-run partnership for the third wicket with Tilak Varma to pave the way for Mumbai Indians’ win.
“I have never really celebrated personal milestones. But if those performances help my team, then I am happy. Today, my efforts have helped the team to win the game and I will definitely celebrate that,” Suryakumar said after the match.
“I believe that even if you perform and the team still loses, then we have failed as a unit. But today’s win is a positive sign, we don’t know what will happen next. But this is our first win of the season and we will definitely celebrate…”
Over the last few weeks, in almost every media interaction, the players and the team management had clarified that it was a collective failure, and that the unit is leaving no stone unturned to bounce back.
“We were already enjoying each other’s company during practice sessions and team dinners. This win will spread even more positivity and will help each and everyone learn, going forward,” Suryakumar said.
And in the post-match interaction with the host broadcaster, Ishan also admitted that it is important to stick together as a team. “The victory does mean a lot, because it's not an easy time for us. We need to stick together as a team. We didn't win matches earlier, but loved the effort put by the team today…” he said.
Despite losing openers Rohit and Ishan early, the team showed intent and that’s a positive. “You will lose wickets, you will score runs, such things happen in cricket. The intent from every batter was to finish the game. Hopefully, we win a few more matches in the upcoming games…”, Ishan said.
“...We want to win all the games and make the tournament tough. We need to forget this match and focus on the next game now,” Ishan, who bagged Rs 15.25 crore in the mega auction in February, said.
In an ideal scenario, Mumbai Indians would have wanted to make it to the playoffs. But in a season of learnings, the struggling side can only hope to sign off on a high.
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