Mumbai Indians’ captain Hardik Pandya and Punjab Kings’ stand-in captain Sam Curran through the toss ceremony earlier than an Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 cricket match between Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Mumbai Indians (MI) at Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium, Mullanpur, in Mohali, on April 18, 2024.
| Photo Credit: PTI
Punjab Kings’ cricketer Ashutosh Sharma’s exploits with the willow drew monumental reward from Mumbai Indians skipper Hardik Pandya in addition to his crew’s stand-in captain Sam Curran, with the previous terming it an “unbelievable” show.
Ashutosh and Shashank Singh have emerged because the unlikely heroes for Punjab Kings this IPL season however the failure of the top-order has seen the crew droop to ninth spot within the IPL desk regardless of the some breathtaking performances from the duo.
On Thursday, Ashutosh just about took the sport away from Mumbai Indians along with his 28-ball 61 earlier than PBKS misplaced by 9 runs chasing 193.
Ashutosh additionally executed a shocking sweep shot towards pacer Jasprit Bumrah, one thing which has not been carried out very often towards India’s tempo spearhead.
“Unbelievable, playing the way he (Ashutosh) did and hitting the ball off the middle. (It is) great for his future. We did speak in the timeout about it, not about how we look, we will keep fighting and make sure (that) we don’t bowl the soft balls. Batsmen played good shots but we were soft in certain overs,” Mr.Pandya stated on the post-match presentation ceremony.
The MI skipper heaved an enormous sigh of reduction with a detailed win, stating that each participant’s nerves received examined within the recreation.
“(It was a) very good game. Everyone’s nerves got tested. We spoke that the characters will be checked in this game. But (it is) natural (that) you (would) think you are ahead but IPL has a tendency to show that oppositions can come back and how,” Pandya added.
Punjab Kings’ stand-in captain Sam Curran stated it was heartening to see kids like Ashutosh and Shashank rising to the event, regardless of shedding some shut matches within the latest previous.
“Another close one, I think this team likes a close one, but unfortunately another loss. Another incredible knock from the young guy (Ashutosh), but another close loss,” he stated.
“It’s very tough. We have lost a lot of wickets at the start, the way the younger guys have taken the team so close is heartening.” “They have incredible confidence, you see a guy like Ashutosh having the confidence to play the sweeps and the big hits against pacers, it’s so great to watch them in action,” Curran stated.
The Englishman stated there were a variety of positives to take from such shut defeats.
“It’s disheartening to lose close games, but there are a lot of positives in this team. We still have the belief in us, we believe we can turn this around, the sun will come up tomorrow and we will hopefully get on a winning run,” Curran stated.
The participant of the match Jasprit Bumrah, who bowled an excellent spell of three/21 stated it was a a lot nearer recreation than he anticipated.
“(It was a) much closer game than what we thought. (I) want to make an impact early on. In this format, ball swings for two overs, and you want to make use of that,” he stated.
Bumrah stated the T20 format is merciless for bowlers and is tilted in favour of batters. “This format is a little difficult for the bowlers because the batsmanship is going over, plus the time restrictions and the Impact Player rule. What you can do is prepare your best and back yourself,” he stated.
“Go out there and give your best. I try to relay messages from wherever I am on the field. You don’t want to give too many messages,” Bumrah added.
