Conspiracy theories circulating in Mumbai before to the game suggested a coordinated attempt to muffle the voices of Rohit Sharma’s supporters during Monday’s (April 1) Mumbai Indians vs. Rajasthan Royals game at Wankhede Stadium. Rumors that the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) was trying to quiet pro-Rohit voices even brought the association into the controversy due to this malicious assumption. This was presumably caused by the animosity towards Hardik Pandya, who encountered resistance from supporters in Hyderabad and Ahmedabad initially.
Mumbai has also been affected by this tendency, and Pandya is not exempt. The supporters chanted “Rohit, Rohit, Rohit” during the toss and on a few other occasions, and he was jeered at the start of the game. But the fans’ rage didn’t appear that intense. Besides, they had no reason to celebrate Rohit’s golden duck innings.
But the supporters’ dissatisfaction became even more evident when the Mumbai Indians lost yet another game—their third in as many games. Pandya had guided the Gujarat Titans to victory in each of his first three games as captain, a performance he had not been able to duplicate at MI, as MI fell to the Royals by six wickets.
Pandya was supposed to be the star of the show, and he did turn out to be, primarily because of the animosity from the spectators. But there was also the rare round of applause for him. He hit six beautiful fours in his 21-ball, 34-run innings, which also happened to be the greatest individual score for MI. Every one of his shots was met with thunderous applause.
Fans may have realized that Pandya is here to stay, and the player may have realized that he would need to win games for the team—something he was unable to accomplish on Monday night—at one point it seemed as though all parties had come to terms with reality. Rohit’s entreaties for calmness from the stands seemed to contribute to the overall atmosphere of reconciliation.
Even though Pandya and Rohit were the center of attention, two players from the opposing team won the day’s honors. With 14 games played thus far this season, Rajasthan Royals became the second team—after Kolkata Knight Riders—to win an away game thanks to the efforts of Trent Boult and Yuzvendra Chahal. They have now taken the top spot in the standings after three straight victories.
In addition to being unplayable, Boult was unstoppable on a pitch with good bounce and carry. The Mumbai Indians’ batting collapsed after he dismissed Rohit Sharma, Naman Dhir, and Dewald Brevis for golden ducks. They were reduced to 14 for 3 in the third over and 20 for 4 in the fourth over, with Ishan Kishan taking the final wicket. Since 2020, Boult has already claimed 25 wickets in the opening over of an IPL innings. More than eight has been taken by no other bowler. Additionally, it was the sixth occasion in an innings that the first four batters had all recorded ducks.
Boult hit the ball with both hands. Usually, he approaches each situation with the same strategy: attempting to get the right-hander caught behind if the ball happens to straighten or out LBW. Rohit fell prey to the odd ball. In the opening over of the innings, he was out. Boult tries to swing it away from the left-hander and gain a caught-behind dismissal. Boult completed his allotted overs with a score of three for 22, which was sufficient to earn him the title of player of the match.
The only thing left to consider is how long Boult, who is already 34, can continue to play and stay healthy. Shane Bond, the Royals’ bowling coach, responded to the query. “One thing about Trent is his extreme physical fitness. He has always been in immaculate shape. Even though he is getting older and is muscular and slender, his training keeps him in terrific shape. Additionally, I believe that players are playing longer now—more batters, but still bowlers between 35 and 36 (play). I have no concerns about him because he can play if he’s in good shape,” Bond remarked.
Chahal performed just as well. He scored three for eleven in four overs, which was actually far better than Boult’s stats. He did a good job of changing tempo when facing right-handers. Flippers and straighter ones worked incredibly well against them. He adhered to a leg stump line for balls that deviate from the right-hander, and on one such delivery, Pandya, who was threatening to put the Royals out of the match, lost his scalp.
The IPL’s top wicket taker, Chahal, is not allowed in the Indian squad. However, Bond stated that shows how deep the Indian’s spin reserves are. The New Zealander remarked, “I think that speaks more probably to the quality of spinners around him.” Of course, Ash (R Ashwin) is a member of our team. We consider ourselves extremely fortunate to have two of the top spinners on the team.
“Kuldeep Yadav has been fantastic for the Indian team. There are several excellent spinners available. Let’s face it, there is some serious competition. Therefore, forgetting that there is a World Cup and starting to bowl in order to make a World Cup team is one of the true obstacles for any bowler entering this tournament, according to Bond.
It will be shocking if Chahal did not earn a spot in the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup, given his current form.
