Akash Madhwal (left) and Nehal Wadhera. (pic credit: sportzpix)
MI and Gujarat Titans will clash in the second qualifier at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Friday. But before moving on to the next game, let’s have a look at the highlights of the Eliminator
The IPL 2023 Eliminator came to an end on Wednesday night as Mumbai Indians beat Lucknow Super Giants by 81 runs to enter Qualifier 2. It was another exciting game of the season which saw some amazing performances on the field. The game began with Naveen-ul-Haq’s brilliance with the ball and a serious effort from Impact Substitute – Nehal Wadhera. The game became one-sided after a tie in the first half.
Mumbai were aided by Akash Madhwal’s dream magic and Lucknow’s hara-giri antics in the middle overs.
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MI will now fly to Ahmedabad, home of Gujarat Titans. In the second qualifier, both the teams will clash at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Friday night. But before moving on to the next game, let’s recap last night’s bombshell – the talking points of the game.
Madhwal, Wrecker-in-Chief: The Uttarakhand pacer put in a brilliant bowling performance to seal an 81-run win over MI and did it proud with a five-wicket haul instead of the best bowling figures in the IPL playoffs – 5 for 5 in 3.3 overs. His main victims were Nicholas Pooran, Prerak Mankad, Ayush Badoni, Ravi Bishnoi and Mohsin Khan. The first bowler to take a five-wicket haul in the playoffs, Madhwal came in as a replacement player in IPL 2022. On Wednesday, he played a key role in MI’s success in Chennai.
Three run-outs that changed fortunes: Marcus Stoinis, K Gautam and Deepak Hooda – all three all-rounders were involved in one of the most bizarre run-outs of the season on Wednesday. Stoinis collides with Hooda and cannot make his ground. Gautam could not beat Rohit Sharma’s direct hit, while Hooda also lost his mind and was caught in an ugly position. These incidents broke the back of LSG, they had no chance left.
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Green, Stoinis – Australian among runs: Australian batsmen – Stoinis (40) and Cameron Green (40) were the top scorers for their respective teams, with almost identical figures. But the difference is, the LSG cricketer found no support from the other end while the multi-millionaire boy from MI shared a 66-run partnership with Suryamar Yadav for the third wicket.
LSG attack leader Naveen: Naveen had his own set of royal victims – MI skipper Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar, Green and Tilak Verma. Naveen getting Surya and Green in one over could prove to be the deciding factor as MI looked at least 15 short of a par-score. With figures of 4 for 38 in four overs, Naveen now has the third best bowling figures for LSG against MI.
Vadhera – ‘Impact’ Full Option: The quick fall of Surya and Green forced Mumbai Indians to induct Wadhera as an ‘impact player’. Thus, he replaced SKY and got out at No.4. 7. He hit a six and hit two fours in the last over bowled by Yash Thakur to increase MI’s score. The Punjab batsman scored 23 runs in 12 balls with the help of 2 sixes and as many fours.
