Mumbai Indians returned to their hometown following IPL 2019 triumph and received a rapturous welcome. Mumbai beat Chennai by four wickets in a thrilling finale last night to win the trophy for an unprecedented fourth time.
Mumbai Indians returned to their hometown following IPL 2019 triumph and received a rapturous welcome. Mumbai beat Chennai by four wickets in a thrilling finale last night to win the trophy for an unprecedented fourth time.
After the tense final came to a dramatic conclusion with MI winning the title off the last delivery by one run, it was time for the cricketers to let their hair down and revel in their success. The official handle of the Mumbai Indians also tweeted a video of the team celebrating on the streets of Mumbai.
IPL 2019 final went down to the wire, where it was veteran Lasith Malinga, who won the match for his team with a wicket on the last ball of the game. Chasing 150, Chennai failed to cross the finishing line and could only muster 149/8 in 20 overs and falling short by a solitary run.
After the encounter Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma revealed that he had advised Lasith Malinga to bowl a slow floater to Shardul Thakur as he was well aware of the tailender’s range of shots.
“The idea was to get the batsman out. So I know Shardul really well. I kind of understand where he wants to hit, so we decided together (Malinga and him) that we’ll go for that slower option,” Rohit said in his post-match press conference.
Rohit also stated that he was ready to accept the blame had the decision to let Malinga bowl the final over backfired. “When the decision comes off, it looks all nice. It can backfire also. At that stage, I wanted to go with experience, with somebody who has been in such a situation before. And Malinga has been in that situation a million times. So we backed him,” he added.
Rohit also went to compare the situation with the IPL 2017 final, which Mumbai won by one run against MS Dhoni-led Rising Pune Supergiants. Australian pacer Mitchell Johnson had then defended 11 runs in the final over to pull-off a one-run victory.
“I clearly remember when we won here in 2017, it was Mitchell Johnson who bowled that last over and defended only 10 runs. So yes, sometimes you’ve got to go with only instincts, sometimes you’ve got to go a little backwards and think what these experienced players have done and what they bring to the table,” Rohit said.
It was Rohit Sharma who won the final toss of the competition and elected to bat first. After opting to bat, Mumbai ended up with a below-par total despite Kieron Pollard’s unbeaten 25-ball 41.
Jasprit Bumrah was impressive with the ball once again, as he gave just 14 runs and picked up two wickets in his four overs. In the penultimate over, he dismissed Dwayne Bravo but conceded nine runs due to poor misfielding.
Rohit Sharma also became the first player to win five IPL titles, with his first title coming back in 2009 with the defunct Deccan Chargers.
Jasprit Bumrah (2/14) was declared the Man of the Match while teammate Kieron Pollard bagged the Perfect Catch of the Season after his screamer at deep point off Suresh Raina in the league stage.