IPL 2020 | RR vs MI: Hits and Flops of the game as Royals do a ‘Halla Bol’ on Mumbai
Winning a tough game against Mumbai Indians by chasing down 196 with 8 wickets in hand and 10 balls to spare surely requires a herculean effort. And that is exactly what was put in by the English all-rounder Ben Stokes, scoring a magnificent hundred to take his team through in Abu Dhabi.
It was the toughest game to date for the Rajasthan Royals this season because they had to mandatorily win it to stay alive in the league and they were playing against the table-toppers Mumbai Indians. Added to that pressure were a huge total of 196 to be chased as Hardik Pandya had gone bonkers in the death overs to render all the previous good work done by the Royals bowler as useless.
However, once Sanju Samson joined Stokes in the middle, there was no looking back for them. But apart from Sanju and Stokes, who else contributed to the Royals’ win? Who were the culprits for Mumbai Indians? All this would become clear in the Hits and Flops section below.
Hits
#1 Ben Stokes
Before this game, Stokes in his last five appearances in IPL 2020 hadn’t even hit a six. He was not someone that the Rajasthan side was banking on. But boy o boy! Did he surprise people and his own team! The 29-year-old went after the Mumbai bowlers right from the word go and didn’t stop until the task of getting to 196 was achieved.
On his way to 107* off just 60 balls, the Englishman hit 14 fours and three sixes. He was rightfully adjudged Man of the Match.
#2 Sanju Samson
The spark in Sanju Samson had been lost after the first three games of the Royals’ 2020 campaign. However, the team didn’t lose its faith in him and backed him in every game. The Keralite repaid the faith and stood alongside Stokes to see the team through in the most essential match. Sanju and Stokes added unbeaten 152 off just 82 balls to seal the deal for the team.
In his knock of 54* (31), the 25-year-old hit five fours and three sixes.
#3 Jofra Archer
One of the few bowlers in the tournament who have consistently hit the right lengths in every situation, Archer was phenomenal in this game as well. He was so god that in the 19th over, when Hardik Pandya was at his best, sending the balls out of the park at will, he gave away just three runs. In the entire match, Archer gave away just 31 runs and took two wickets as well.
The English man is now in the second position in the list of Purple cap holders with 17 wickets in 12 games. The catch that he took to dismiss Ishan Kishan at the third man was a bonus over and above his bowling.
Flops
#1 Kieron Pollard
Captain of the side for this game, Pollard had an altogether disappointing match as he was neither able to score big nor take any wickets, and the changes made by him in the field as captain were also non-effective.
The 33-year-old West Indian could make only six runs while batting, before getting bowled by a Shreyas Gopal flipper. In bowling too, he gave away 18 runs in two overs, without taking any wicket.
#2 Jasprit Bumrah
Bumrah was the key if Mumbai was to defend that total on that wicket. As admitted by both the captain s in the post-match presentation chats, the wicket had got better in the second innings and there was no grip what so ever for the spinners. In such situations, the captain rightfully went to Bumrah so that he could bring in some change at the status quo maintained by Stokes and Samson.
However, the 26-year-old was unable to bring even the slightest of change, although he hit Stokes’ pads twice, the balls were pitching outside leg by a mile. Thus an ineffective Bumrah is always a flop in any game, especially in a one where the team is defending 195.
Special Mention: Hardik Pandya
Hardik Pandya as has been many a time in this piece was phenomenal with the bat. He came at a time when the chips were literally down for the Mumbai team and the run rate was lingering at around seven and a half. It was he and Saurabh Tiwary at the start and then he alone that brought the blue and gold from 120 at the end of the 16th to 195 at the end of 20th. Hardik made a scintillating 60* off just 21 balls in the process. his knock included just two fours, but seven huge sixes.
The Royals courtesy this win now have a chance of entering the Playoffs if they go on to win the next of their two games. Mumbai Indians on the other hand would just wish that Rohit Sharma, their usual captain gets fit before their next encounter as they can’t afford a goof-up at the business end of the tournament.
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