MI are 103/3 and Rohit Sharma has just scored his fifty with a magnificent six !
Sachin was out to Bollinger for 5 and Satish was out to Morkel for a duck! MI were 13/2.
Cometh the hour, cometh the man and the man proved to be Rohit Sharma. He has played a scintillating knock of 53 not out !
Class will tell. Rohit Sharma and Badrinath shone for MI and CSK ! Sharma's 87 was a superb innings while Badrinath's was simply magnificent. But then it was Bajji's 5/18 which turned the tide in favour of Mumbai. He clean bowled Albie Morkel, had Ashwin caught at long on and made Joginder Sharma top edge him.
Bajji struck thrice in one over. The Mumbai Indians fought hard against the character innings played by Badrinath ( 71 not out ). Badrinath played responsibly and saw that he was running out of partners ! Chennai finished at 156/9 !
Badrinath looked like a forlorn figure, as his team mates surrendered meekly to Bajji & Co. He off drove Munaf for a four and his late cuts were simply dazzling. He lofted Bajji for four in the seventh over and then glided R Sharma to the fence. He lofted Sharma for a mighty six. He then went into his shell after the loss of Hussey and Dhoni !
If Badri was Poetry in Motion, Rohit Sharma was elegance personified. R Sharma hit three fours in the first four deliveries he faced and then powered Mumbai to a competitive 164.
When Sachin perished at 13/2, Chennai had a great chance to pull it off. But Sharma's brilliance vetoed such a move. Sharma was simply brilliant and with Rayudu put on 61 run partnership and 87 runs with Symonds off just 8.1 overs !
It seems IPL is proving for discards as Gayle, Badrinath and Sharma proved yesterday. Not only for discards, but also for young stars, as we find Valthaty, Sunny Sohail, Rayudu, Menaria and Chipli showcasing their talents before one billion plus viewers.
For others, it was a boon that Sachin got out. Now they had time to play some 18 overs and R Sharma exploited that situation. Suddenly the Chennai attack, which had looked menacing, began to lose its venom. And Rohit capitalised on this opportunity and dazzled the crowd with some lusty hitting.
He took the MI score past 100 and his fifty by lofting Ranadiv for a huge six. He smashed Raina for 17 runs and looked menacing to the hapless Chennai bowlers. When he fell in the final over, Mumbai had reached respectability.
He was also responsible for Chennai's fall, as he dived and took a catch off Dhoni. The day belonged to him !
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