IPL 2018: Rohit keeps Mumbai Indians breathing

PUNE: Rohit Sharma needed all his skill and experience to play to counter the end-game mastery of Chennai Super Kings and keep Mumbai Indians in the fight for a last-four berth.
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With 22 to get off 12 balls, the match could have gone either way, especially with one over of Dwayne Bravo left. But CSK skipper MS Dhoni, hoping that he will have at least 10 to play with in the last over, threw the ball to Shardul Thakur to bowl the 19th.
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Rohit was waiting for this opportunity.He didn’t lose his cool, nor did he try any monstrous shot. He just looked for the gaps in crunch moment and threaded three beautiful boundaries that tilted the game in MI’s favour.
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In all, Rohit (56 not out off 36 balls) got 17 off Shardul’s over that virtually made the last over academic. Dhoni gave the ball to leggie Imran Tahir with the hope that he could take a couple of wickets, but Rohit and Hardik walked away to the victory target.
While Rohit’s game towards the end was superb, it was Evin Lewis (44) and Surya Kumar Yadav (42) who did the early damage. In a show of controlled aggression, they put up 69 for the first wicket and gave the middle order the platform. Rohit and Lewis too carried on with the good work but there were a couple of quiet overs in the 16th and 17th that made things a little wobbly for Mumbai. But Rohit did enough to ensure there was no damage at the end.
Earlier, CSK were on course for a big total when they had put up 91 in the first 10 overs with Suresh Raina and Ambati Rayudu looking to take the game away. The duo looked in complete control, a boundary coming in almost every over.
While Rayudu (46 off 35 balls) was his usual solid self, Raina (75 off 47 balls) looked in great touch. His use of the feet against spinners was exceptional and he didn’t miss a single chance to go over the top. After Rayudu got out, it was Dhoni and Raina who threatened to take over. But the big push that is so characteristic of a CSK innings did not come. There were the occasional big shots, but the Mumbai Indians bowlers were able to push in the occasional quiet over which kept the run in check.
Mumbai Indians found an unlikely hero in left-arm pacer Mitchell McClenaghan (2-26). In the 18th over, he dismissed the two finishers Dhoni and Bravo in quick succession which stopped CSK from going into an overdrive. It was a clever variation of length and pace that did the duo in. While Dhoni tried to hit a wide full toss and gave a catch in the deep, Bravo was done in by a shorter one which Bravo top-edged.
But Raina was still there and he was able to bring out a couple of big shots at the right moment that helped CSK reach 169/5.