Kaif picks the biggest match-winner for Mumbai in the match against Delhi

Mumbai have returned to the winning track after losing three matches under the leadership of their new skipper Hardik Pandya. The five-time champions defeated Delhi by 29 runs at the iconic Wankhede stadium to register their first win of the 2024 Indian T20 League season. Ex-Indian cricket Mohammad Kaif glorified the biggest match winner of the franchise for his winning effort. Almost everyone contributed to that match, but Romario Shepherd’s cameo of 39 runs off just 10 deliveries made the difference at the end of the first innings and guided Mumbai to put up a huge score against Delhi.  

The visitors were headed by flamboyant opener Prithvi Shaw (66 runs) and later on, Tristan Stubbs (77* runs) led the guns blazing while hunting down a mammoth target of 235 runs. However, the quite obvious saviour Jasprit Bumrah bowled a toe-tickling yorker to send Shaw back to the pavilion. His departure made the run chase even more difficult for the Capitals. Bumrah was in his prime as he conceded just 22 runs and took 2 wickets at the end of his 4-over tenure to win the match for Mumbai. Kaif praised Bumrah too for saving the day for Mumbai. 

“Mumbai Indians have Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav, but Jasprit Bumrah is their biggest winner. God forbids if he leaves Mumbai Indians someday, the franchise would become less impactful. Despite the presence of star batters, he is at the top of the list when it comes to rating the stars. Look at his Yorker to Prithvi Shaw. The batter tried to take his feet away from the firing line,” Mohammad Kaif said on a sports channel.

“Bumrah was accurate throughout the game and bowled sensational overs. He gave away just 22 from his quota of overs on a day when other bowlers were taken for plenty of runs. It was a high-scoring match, but it didn’t impact Bumrah,” he stated.

In the meantime, Gerald Coetzee also fetched four scalps for Mumbai.