A delighted Mumbai Indians captain, Rohit Sharma, said they were happy to cross the finishing line in the IPL final which he felt could have gone either way, especially in the last over.
Speaking to media after Mumbai defeated Chennai Super Kings by one run at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium on Sunday night, Rohit said they knew in the first-half once they scored 149 it would be a tight game.
“So, we were all prepared for it, it is just about holding nerves at a crucial phase of the game,” he said.
Referring to the lot of lengthy discussions in the last few overs, Rohit said they always gather and decide collectively what they need to do as a team in a given moment.
The Mumbai captain refused to pick any of the five IPL Trophies he won as the best one. “Because, every season has its own challenges, and to cross those them, it takes a lot of effort. I will cherish all the five,” he said. “I have been fortunate to get this kind of team,” he added.
Was it a ploy by Lasith Malinga to bowl a slower yorker to Shardul Thakur with two needed off the last ball? “We didn’t want it to go to the Super Over. We thought we could get a wicket, the idea is to finish it off there. It could have gone either way,” Rohit said.
“I know Shardul really well as he plays for Mumbai. So, I understand what he wants to hit. So, we decided to go for the slower ball option,” he said.
“You have to be brave to take those crucial decisions. No matter what happens, if Shardul had connected with a big hit, and if he didn’t we thought we had a chance to win the game,” Rohit said.
The victorious captain said Malinga was one of the finest bowlers and he was the clear choice to bowl the final over because of his experience recalling how he banked on Mitchell Johnson against Rising Pune Supergiant in the 2017 final in Hyderabad when the team successfully defended 10 runs in the final over.
‘Dhoni run-out, a big moment’
A disappointed CSK coach Stephen Fleming felt that the run-out of the captain M.S. Dhoni was a big moment in the game.
“Wasn’t it? It took a long time to give so that obviously was pretty close,” he said. “He has been great for us not just with his bat but his calmness at the crease. He just operates at a different level,” he said.
“We were happy restricting Mumbai to 149 for it could have been a lot more. The target was there for the asking but we were not good enough to take it,” Fleming concluded.
