Ahmedabad: Mumbai Indians (MI) bowling coach Shane Bond conveyed his dissatisfaction regarding his team’s bowling display against Gujarat Titans, saying that the bowlers had given away too many freebies to David Miller and Abhinav Manohar, who took the game away from MI.
On the back of an incredible batting display followed by a classy show with the ball, Titans registered a clinical 55-run win over MI Tuesday night and jumped to the second spot on the points table.
Bowling first, after a half-century from Shubman Gill (56 off 34) MI did reasonably well to reduce Gujarat to 101/4 at one point. But a late onslaught by Manohar (42 off 21) and Miller (46 off 22), who shared a 71-run partnership, helped the Titans recover. Then Rahul Tewatia gave the finishing touches to the innings with his unbeaten 20 off 5 as GT posted 207/6.
Then, Afghanistan spinners Rashid Khan (2-27) and Noor Ahmad (3-37) starred with the ball as Titans restricted Mumbai Indians to 152/9 and sealed a comprehensive victory.
Speaking at the post-match conference, Bond blamed MI’s poor execution of the game plan for the loss.
“It’s a combination of things. We’re not executing what we need to. We’ve got pretty simple plans. Watch how we bowled in an area. We got hit and immediately resorted to some changes. It’s disappointing when we can’t distinguish plans when we are on the back foot during difficult run chases.
“Like in the last game, I think it was 100/4, and then we just dished up freebies. We gave (David) Miller and (Abhinav) Manohar free hits, and once we gave players to get in runs, they took the game away from us. And that’s the disappointing thing from our point of view. So, we just have to be better in our decision-making and our execution. In short, it was a tough day for us,” Bond said.
Bond further lavished praise on Titans’ bowler and explained how they exploited the opportunities on a tricky pitch, especially GT’s seamers in the powerplay, who got the ball to talk.
“When you chase 208, the only plan is to keep going. We (MI) tried to ride the storm as the ball swung differently. Look at the way Hardik and Mohammed Shami bowled, not giving us free balls to hit. We had to try to manufacture something. Thus, the score at the end of the powerplay reflected how they bowled on a wicket, which they did the same to RR.
“The first six overs were tough for both teams, as it would get difficult for the bowling team because of the dew factor. We were trying to stop the damage to our run rate, which has taken another big hit tonight,” he said.
Though MI suffered a huge loss, Arjun Tendulkar’s performance was a bright spot. After a bad outing against Punjab Kings in the last game, the left arm pacer bounced back strongly as he gave away just five runs in the two overs he bowled and picked up the wicket of Wriddhiman Saha early in the powerplay.
“He did well today, obviously after what happened in the last game. We will work on increasing his pace, but he did all that was asked of him today.
“It’s never easy on the back of a bad day. A few of our bowlers had bad days over the last few games. And that’s the thing with T20 cricket, where you got to have thick skin in a short memory and must come out. We must execute all our plans to find ourselves in the playoffs at the back end of the tournament. We just have to be better at what we do,” Bond said.
When the bowling coach was quizzed about a potential shake-up to the team structure and playing XI selection. He responded: “We haven’t had time to discuss team changes or plans. When you are coming off a loss, the instant reaction is to consider the balance of the team. I think our batting order has done well in the tournament.
“About our bowling combination, who bowls and how they bowl is up for grabs, and fair enough, as we haven’t been up to the mark. We have a couple of days before the next game and some practice sessions to get stuck into. I’m sure the head coach and the captain, those conversations on who warrants a place in the team will eventually happen.”
MI, currently sitting in seventh spot in the standings, next play Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai April 30.