If one is to pick the best performer of the Indian Premier League (IPL) game between Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad, he would be spoilt for choice. There would definitely be three contenders for the slot—Harbhajan Singh, Jasprit Bumrah and Nitish Rana.
While the first two did the track with the ball, the young batsman once again let his willow do the talking—putting the fraternity in a spot to pick the best. Even though, there is triangular challenge, in the end, Bumrah has the last laugh. The young bowler gets rewarded for his cool and calm performance under pressure. That makes him the Man of the Match.
If Harbhajan set things upfront, opening the bowling and picking up two wickets, it was Bumrah who kept the momentum going, scalping three wickets for 24. That made the difference.
The Sunrisers Hyderabad batsmen, known for their firepower, struggled to solve the Bumrah puzzle—tilting the game in Mumbai’s favour. Though Bumrah admitted that it was a difficult ground to bowl in the end, he was happy with his own performance. And as always, he stuck to the basic to unnerve the opponents.
Another factor that worked in his favour was the fact that the new strategy of bowling with the wet ball at the nets. So, even as it got a bit dewy, Bumrah could reap the benefits from the Wankhede track. They say, behind every success, there remains an unsung hero. And, for Bumrah, it was Lasith Malinga. “It is always very beneficial when Lasith Malinga is around, so I always keep asking him what I have to do and what needs to be done,” the youngster admitted.
Well, that’s a big boost!
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