“Jasprit Bumrah Had PBKS On Back Foot”: IPL Winning Coach Questions Hardik Pandya’s Captaincy

Former Australian all-rounder Tom Moody feels Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya did not use pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah optimally during the IPL clash against Punjab Kings which allowed them to fight back from a difficult position and come within touching distance of MI’s total. Bumrah was matchless in the game in Mullanpur on Thursday, taking the wickets of opener Sam Curran, Rilee Rossouw and the dangerous Shashank Singh to help MI win by nine runs. MI had set PBKS a target of 193.

The India mainstay bagged two wickets in the second over, dismissing Curran and Rossouw, but just when PBKS looked down and out, he was taken out of the attack, allowing the home team to claw back.

“Again, Mumbai leaning on him so much to turn their fortunes around. He bowled two overs early on and had the Punjab Kings on their back. But, interestingly enough, he didn’t bowl another over until the 13th,” said the former Australian cricketer on Star Sports Cricket Live.

“He’s at the peak of his powers at the moment. And that’s my point of where I think the Mumbai Indians let the Punjab Kings back into this contest. (Gerald) Coetzee and Bumrah for mine, and I’ll be interested to hear what the other fast bowlers think on this show. Should (Bumrah) have bowled again to be able to put Punjab completely out onto the campus,” he added.

Former South African quick Dale Steyn opined that MI’s frontline pacers Bumrah and Coetzee need support from other bowlers, given the rigours of the IPL. He hinted that an off-colour Pandya was not helping MI’s bowling department.

“We want to see them (MI) close out games early by bringing Bumrah back or Coetzee. But then they have to depend on guys like Hardik to finish off, who hasn’t been bowling as well of late and some of the other bowlers travelling like (Romario) Shepherd, they may struggle in the back end.

“Mumbai are in a situation now where they have to tactically figure things out, but they also need somebody to step up, their bowlers to step up and really help out Bumrah and Coetzee, because if they (MI) keep going the way they are, they might lose more points again.” Moody also felt that Suryakumar Yadav will have to play the entire duration of the league to regain full fitness after returning from an ankle injury and a hernia surgery.

‘Mr 360 degrees’ struck a 53-ball 78 on Thursday as he guide MI to 192. With the middle-order batter vital to India’s chances in the T20 World Cup in the West Indies and USA, Moody felt the cricketer needs to get his peak fitness back.

“It’s important that he slowly works back into full fitness, he needs to be playing for the whole 40 overs and that would be great. Not that he bowls or anything but for his own peace of mind and fitness for that the preparation for what is beyond the IPL. It was a great innings today (from him).

Steyn praised PBSK batter Ashutosh Sharma for the sweep shot he employed against Bumrah, something which has not been used against the India quick too often.

“I mean, IPL never ceases to disappoint us with close games and creating new heroes… Bumrah bowls a no-ball, and the next thing Ashutosh goes down and plays that sweep that goes for six.”

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