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MI vs KKR: Fired up fast bowlers Bumrah, Cummins deliver with pace and bounce; Rohit rues a tech goof up

The IPL game between struggling teams was one in which fast bowlers from either side made the difference and the main acts had something to prove.

Written by Shamik Chakrabarty |
Updated: May 10, 2022 7:56:52 am
Kolkata Knight Riders defeat Mumbai Indians by 52 runs. (Photos by Rahul Gulati & Deepak Malik / Sportzpics for IPL)

Before Umran, there was Jasprit

Amid the noise around Umran Malik et al, Jasprit Bumrah had taken a back seat. Mumbai Indians were playing for pride and maybe, the fast bowler had a point to prove – actually who is the real boss. A fired up Bumrah is an uncommon sight in cricket. He usually lets his bowling do the talking. But today he was animated. It was a slow burn. Bumrah beat Andre Russell for pace and casually celebrated the big man’s scalp. Nitish Rana’s wicket, via a sharp bouncer, had the latency of a review; Bumrah didn’t hear anything but Ishan Kishan behind the stumps was convinced and the ‘keeper was right. By the time he bounced out Pat Cummins, Bumrah was firing on all cylinders. He gave the Aussie a send off. Sunil Narine was a jumping jack against a 145kph thunderbolt. Bumrah, pumped by the adrenaline rush and foot speed, reached in time to take the return catch on his follow through. It was an amazing fifer, including a triple-wicket maiden. At last, there was something for Mumbai Indians to savour.

Cummins bounces back with the bouncer

Pat Cummins’ pride was hurt. The Australian Test team captain, a Rs 7.25-crore buy for Kolkata Knight Riders, was dropped by the franchise after a few leaky bowling performances. Like Bumrah, Cummins, too, had a point to prove. When in doubt, bounced the batsmen out – the template worked for the fast bowler. A well-set Ishan Kishan was late on the shot and was caught at deep backward square. Another sharp bouncer hit Daniel Sams on the helmet, via a top edge, and to the wicketkeeper. Murugan Ashwin tried to ramp a short ball outside off and unerringly found Varun Chakravarthy at fine third man. Cummins reacted to a three-wicket over with a muted fist pump. He had already made a big enough statement.

Rohit Sharma probably was a victim of a tech goof-up. The spike and where the ball was, didn’t match.(Twitter)

Even tech conspires against Rohit

Rohit Sharma probably was a victim of a tech goof-up. The spike and where the ball was, didn’t match. Third umpire Bruce Oxenford trusted the technology. Once the DRS came into play, maybe there was no scope for human intervention. Tim Southee bowled a length ball to the Mumbai Indians captain and the latter looked to have missed it, as he went for a back foot defensive prod. The ball ricocheted off the back leg to Sheldon Jackson behind the stumps. Kolkata Knight Riders went for a review. Ultra-edge showed large spikes before and after the ball passed the bat, as also while the ball was passing the bat. The third umpire felt that one of those spikes had to be bat on ball and he overturned the on-field decision. Rohit walked off in disbelief, visibly hot under the collar.

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