Suryakumar Yadav was once again phenomenal, smashing 83 (35b, 7×4, 6×6) as the Mumbai Indians defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in IPL 2023 Match 54 at the Wankhede Stadium on a humid Tuesday evening.
MI triumphed by six wickets in 16.3 overs after being set a difficult target of 200. Nehal Wadhera also delivered an outstanding batting performance, hitting an unbeaten 52 off 34 deliveries. His delivery contained four fours and three sixes. Faf du Plessis’ 65 (41b, 5×4, 3×6) and Glenn Maxwell’s 68 (33b, 8×4, 4×6) contributed significantly to RCB’s impressive total of 199/6.
With 12 points from 11 contests, Michigan is now in third place in the 10-team table. In contrast, RCB is in seventh place with 10 points from 11 games, and the playoff competition is heating up.
JioCinema IPL expert Zaheer Khan was astounded by Yadav’s dominance, stating, “They need to hold his bat from behind or hold his thighs; he’s been batting like that. There was a difficult period, but once he found his cadence, things got even better. Never will this be positive news for bowlers.”
“Because of the way he bats and approaches the game, no field placement can assist them. Every time I see them play, it appears as though the bowlers are attempting to bowl outside the off-stump and pack the side with four players, but SKY is still striking fours, and you cannot stop it,” said the former India paceman.
This was the third occasion in IPL history that MI has chased down a target of 190 runs or more in less than 17 overs. They are the only team to ever accomplish this feat. After a sluggish start to the season, Suresh Raina attributed this turnaround to the team’s winning ethos.
“Suryakumar Yadav celebration demonstrated how simple it is for a team to pursue down 200 runs.
It serves as a reminder that MI knows how to pursue and recover from targets. They have won the trophy five times and always have a game-winning goal in their locker room. Whether it’s Tilak Varma, Wadhera, Greene, or Tim David, Piyush Chawla is the most prominent. He consistently bowls in crucial situations to take MI wickets. Because of this, they dominate the IPL. “Not every team can climb from eighth to third place in the standings,” Raina stated.
Graeme Smith commented on the effect of the two points on MI. “We’ve discussed the significance of two points tonight. MI, I was just wondering. I don’t recall them playing a great game this season, yet they are in third place on the standings. Tonight’s two points proved decisive. The bowlers appeared discombobulated despite having to pursue 200. However, there were a number of positives for them tonight. They need to strengthen their catching, but they won the game in the second half with the ball. They are a wonderful chasing team, have a strong batting unit, and have demonstrated their dominance through their outstanding performances.”