Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh said that Ajinkya Rahane missed a trick by not bowling Sunil Narine against an ominous looking Rohit Sharma in the powerplay during Kolkata Knight Riders; match vs Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede on Sunday. Rohit went on to score a breezy 78 runs as well as added 148 runs with opening partner Ryan Rickelton (81) to help MI defeat KKR by 6 wickets.
“The best match-up was to bowl Sunil Narine in the powerplay, at least one or two overs to target Rohit Sharma early. That was their best chance to pick wickets and put Mumbai under pressure. Instead, Narine didn’t even complete his full quota, which shows the captaincy wasn’t up to the mark,” Harbhajan told JioStar.
“Credit to Rohit Sharma and Ryan Rickelton. They batted with ease and never let the bowlers settle, but KKR could have handled that phase much better,” the former off spinner added.
Rickelton and Rohit slammed quickfire fifties, helping Mumbai win their first opening round match after 13 seasons. Chasing 221, Rickelton (81 off 43 balls) and Rohit (78 off 38 balls) shared a breezy 148-run opening stand off just 71 balls to set the platform for the win which MI achieved in 19.1 overs, reaching 224 for four. It was also a record chase by MI at home ground.
While Rickelton hit four boundaries and eight sixes, Rohit knock was laced with six fours and as many maximums.
Earlier, captain Rahane hit a fine half-century, but it was debutant Angkrish Raghuvanshi who lit up the stadium with a 29-ball 51 to help KKR post 220 for four.
Opener Rahane made 67 off 40 balls with the help of three fours and five sixes, while Raghuvanshi decorated his knock with six boundaries and two hits over the fence.
Towards the end, Rinku Singh made an unbeaten 21-ball 33. Opting to bowl, Shardul Thakur (3/39) turned out to be the top wicket-taker for MI.
