Currently in resurgent form, Mumbai Indians defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore by six wickets in Match 54 of IPL 2023, at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Chasing a target of 200 runs, MI raced to 200/4 in 16.3 overs, courtesy of a knock of 83 runs off 35 balls by Suryakumar Yadav. Meanwhile, Nehal Wadhera slammed an unbeaten knock of 52 runs off 34 deliveries. For RCB’s bowling department, Vyshak Vijay Kumar and Wanindu Hasaranga took two wickets each.
(IPL Twitter)
Initially, RCB were restricted to 199/6 in 20 overs. Glenn Maxwell played a good knock of 68 runs off 33 balls. Meanwhile, Faf du Plessis stayed on top of the Orange Cap race with 65 runs off 41 deliveries. Jason Behrendorff was in hot form for MI and scalped three dismissals.
Despite MI’s resurgence, captain Rohit Sharma saw his poor run of form continue and was dismissed for seven runs off eight balls. In 11 matches in IPL 2023, Rohit has only managed 191 runs, including a half-century.
Speaking during an interaction, former West Indies captain Daren Ganga had some advice for Rohit. Ganga felt that the Team India skipper should take a break after the WTC final, so that he is ready for the upcoming ODI World Cup this year, scheduled to be held in India. The WTC final against Australia take place from June 7-11, at The Oval in London.
Using Virat Kohli’s example, Ganga said, “There is no doubt that he is a quality player. We have seen stories in the past of great players who have gone through periods of slump, more recently Virat Kohli was in a lull with his batting and he had to go through a lean period before he regained that form and that desire to score runs.”
“Rohit is going through a similar situation where he is playing a lot of cricket, sometimes as a player you can get jaded, (with) the responsibilities as captain, as a player.
“You have heard Sunil Gavaskar recommend that he take a break, freshen his mind before the World Test Championship – that might be a good option for him. I felt that in a couple of matches that he played as an impact player with Suryakumar Yadav leading the side that can also be a common ground for him to get a little more time for himself so that he can be fresh when it comes to his batting in the WTC final”, he further added.
After a poor start to their campaign, MI are currently third in the IPL 2023 points table with 12 points in 11 games, packed with six wins and five defeats. MI face Gujarat Titans, Lucknow Super Giants and Sunrisers Hyderabad in their remaining three fixtures of the league phase, and they will be aiming to qualify for their playoffs.
(With PTI Inputs)
