Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) secured a convincing four-wicket victory over Mumbai Indians (MI) at the Lucknow stadium on Tuesday. While the win extends LSG’s dominance in IPL 2024, Mumbai’s bowlers displayed commendable spirit despite a challenging start.
LSG bowling prowess restricts MI
Opting to bowl first, LSG capitalized on their decision, restricting a dangerous MI batting line-up to a meagre 144 runs. The damage was primarily inflicted during the powerplay overs, highlighting MI’s vulnerability early on.
Nehal Wadhera Valiant Effort
Despite the early batting collapse, credit goes to Nehal Wadhera for his valiant knock of 46 runs off 41 balls. His dedication and love for the game shone through as he spoke at the post-match press conference.
Nehal Wadhera Admits Missed Opportunities
While acknowledging the team’s struggles, Nehal Wadhera pointed out crucial missed opportunities.
“Four of our wickets fell quite early. If one side (of the ground) was smaller and we had a good match-up, we could have taken a chance at that moment,” Nehal said.
“At that time, it would have been better to hit boundary fours, which we were doing later on. Ishan (Kishan) hit two or three fours very well. After that, as soon as he got out, it was my responsibility to take the team forward, which I did. But, I missed some opportunities the opposition bowlers gave me. Had I played those, I would have scored 10-15 or at least 20-25 extra runs.”
Nehal Wadhera credits LSG bowling
He further commended the LSG bowlers for exploiting the slow pitch conditions, particularly spinner Ravi Bishnoi, whose deceptive pace and turn proved challenging. Wadhera believes a slightly higher score could have altered the game’s outcome.
“Their (LSG bowlers) slow balls were not coming onto the bat properly, so it was gripping,” he added.
“And you saw Ravi Bishnoi, with the pace with which he was bowling, the ball was turning well, which I wasn’t expecting. It was turning a lot. The game would have been different if it were 10-15 runs more on our scoreboard.”
Tim David Earns Praise
Nehal Wadhera also reserved special praise for teammate Tim David, whose late-innings power-hitting has become a recurring theme. He acknowledged the difficulty of hitting sixes consistently on Lucknow’s large ground and applauded David’s aggressive batting approach.
“This is India’s biggest ground, so boundaries and sixes don’t apply. One could manage only singles and doubles, like Ishan and I were playing at the start. It would have been good to go further with that strategy of hitting singles and doubles. But later, Tim (David) came down and batted very well. It is not easy to hit sixes at will on this ground. You can look back at its history, but the way Tim kept hitting the ball was commendable,” the southpaw said.
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Mumbai Indians not out of IPL 2024 Playoffs race
Despite the setback, Mumbai Indians remain a force to be reckoned with. With four matches remaining in the tournament, Hardik Pandya‘s determined team is known for their ability to bounce back and surprise their opponents. Mumbai’s fighting spirit ensures that their journey in IPL 2024 is far from over.
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