Well, what a game. This felt like a kid in her/his first roller coaster ride as Mumbai versus Gujarat provided us with the first Super Over of the Indian Premier League 2017.
Gujarat Lions won the toss and opted to bat first, but couldn’t put up the total they liked. However, they managed to crawl to 153 in their 20 overs. In response, Mumbai Indians made a flying start to their innings, but lost their way soon after. In the end, some special fielding from the Lions halted the Indians, resulting in a Super Over.
Extra Cover: IPL 2017, GL vs MI: Gujarat's spree of direct hits leading to a Super Over is the SK Play of the Match
Jasprit Bumrah’s insane bowling in the Super Over denied Gujarat Lions a great comeback. Here are 5 memorable moments from the match that don't fade away, quite like the Axe Signature range of body perfumes.
#1 Ishan Kishan surprise
Gujarat Lions are among those teams in this year’s Indian Premier League that are yet to find the right opening pair. In their desperation for stability, they placed their hopes on Ishan Kishan to partner Brendon McCullum at the top.
It didn’t work out in the last game as he could only manage 16 runs, but we saw a glimpse of his talent against the Mumbai Indians. Against the Rohit Sharma-led side, he scored 48 runs off just 35 balls, hitting six boundaries and two sixes in the process.
#2 Bumrah proves his death bowling prowess
Till a few years ago, India had never possessed a bowler who could bowl well in the death overs. But, with Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah, it seems like they've stuck gold and they could now claim to have the best death bowlers in the world. Mumbai's 23-year-old sensation proved exactly why he is held in such high regard by the team management, in the match against Gujarat Lions.
40 overs could not separate the two sides and it was down to the super overs to determine a winner. James Faulkner bowled well to restrict Mumbai to just 11 runs and set Gujarat a relatively easy target of 12 runs. The Indians needed a miracle to bail them out, and up stepped Jasprit Bumrah. He started off poorly, giving away 2 extras, but what followed was pure magic.
He restricted the devastating pair of Brendan McCullum and Aaron Finch to just 6 runs including the two extras to ensure a memorable victory for the visitors. This over perfectly complemented the 2 wickets he took in his four overs during the match.
#3 Krunal Pandya’s input
The Pandya brothers have been an asset for the Mumbai Indians team for quite a while now. In almost every Mumbai game, at least one of the two does a commendable job. Against the Lions, it was Krunal’s turn to get one over his brother – and he did it in a splendid fashion.
Taking the wickets of Dinesh Karthik, Ravindra Jadeja and Irfan Pathan, Krunal Pandya finished his spell of 4 overs by giving away only 14 runs. He also played a handy innings with the bat, scoring 29 runs in 20 balls that helped Mumbai tie the game and then win it in the super over eventually.
#4 Patel power
One of the best strategies to chase in a T20 game is to attack from ball one, regardless of what the score is. And it seems as though Parthiv Patel is a student of that school of thought. Despite the fact that the target was only 154, Parthiv was at his rampant best as he came to open the innings for the Mumbai Indians.
His innings consisted of 9 boundaries and a six as he went on to make 70 runs in just 44 balls. He made the lion’s share of the runs which helped his side get close to the target.
#5 The direct hits from Gujarat Lions
They might have lost the game in the Super Over, but taking the game to the Super Over was praiseworthy in itself since, at one point, Mumbai Indians were running away with things.
While the likes of Basil Thampi and James Faulkner bowled well, their fielding was what stood out for them. Over the course of the game, they successfully executed five direct hits, four of which resulted in run outs.
In the final over of Mumbai’s innings, two direct hits denied Mumbai the win and ensured the Lions at least made it to a Super Over.
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