After last-ball thriller against Delhi Capitals, Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma credits spinners for restricting opposition and batters for taking their chances to ensure maiden IPL-16 win for 5-time champs
MI skipper Rohit Sharma (left) celebrates the wicket of DC’s Manish Pandey with teammates at New Delhi on Tuesday. Pic/AFP
Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma was a relieved man after his team finally registered its first win in this edition of the IPL with a six-wicket victory over Delhi Capitals in a last-ball thriller here on Tuesday.
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Hard work pays off
Five-time champions MI suffered defeats in their first two matches, but the Rohit-led side finally pulled off a win after completing a chase of 173 in the last ball. “Winning the game is the most important. We have been working hard from the first game. We had a camp in Mumbai, so getting the result [in our favour] feels good. First win is always special,” said Rohit, who was adjudged the Player of the Match for his 45-ball 65.
Piyush Chawla snapped three wickets and Rohit, who introduced spinner Hrithik Shokeen in the fourth over, credited the slow bowlers for performing their job. “We played a Test match here recently, the pitch looked different. Getting a slow bowler was important on this pitch. The spinners kept us in the game.”
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The India skipper said as a batting unit his side wanted to make the most of the Powerplay. “We needed to bat well to chase the total. I thought everyone put their hand up. We had to make it count for the team. I needed to make use of the Powerplay, I knew we had to keep attacking and take our chances,” he said.
Crucial stand with Tilak Varma
“I tried to create a partnership, had a good communication with Tilak [Varma]. It was important for us to have a good partnership [68 runs].” For DC, it was their fourth defeat in as many matches—the second worst start to a season for them after six straight losses in 2013.
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