MI will next face PBKS on May 11 in a day match in Dharamshala.
Mumbai Indians (MI) captain Hardik Pandya was angered as his team’s 6-match winning streak came to an end on May 6. Gujarat Titans (GT) defeated MI in Wankhede Stadium by 3 wickets via the DLS method in a nail-biter.
Heavy rain briefly changed the tide in Mumbai's favor during a close playoff race, as the hosts led by five runs on the DLS chart after eighteen overs.
The Gujarat Titans stayed prepared for any chance while MI waited in the locker room, hoping for a win cut short by the rain. In the end, there was barely enough time for a one-over shootout to decide the champion. Mumbai had only four fielders outside the inner circle after being penalized for a sluggish over rate, and GT needed 15 runs off the last six deliveries.
Deepak Chahar conceded a six and a four, bringing down the equation to 5 runs from 3 balls. Succumbing to pressure, he bowled a no-ball that handed the momentum squarely to the Titans, who eventually won by 3 wickets after Hardik Pandya missed a run-out chance.
Hardik overstepped twice in his 11-ball eighth over. MI's no-ball woes were not their only gaffes; earlier, they lost a key catch by Gujarat captain Shubman Gill on the second delivery of the 12th over. Gill miscued a shot off Ashwani Kumar, and despite sprinting in to catch it, Tilak Varma was unable to hang on.
"Catches did not really cost us, but the no-balls, with my no-balls and even in the last no-ball, in my eyes in T20s, it is a crime, and more often than not, it bites you. But I am really happy with the boys for giving their 120 percent, ensuring we were in the game and not giving up,” Hardik Pandya said after the match.
"Yes, definitely (tough way to go down). We fought well with the total we had. Most of the time, we were out of the game, but we pushed as a group. It was a game of margins. It was definitely not a 150-wicket. It was a 175-wicket; we were short in batting by 20-25 or maybe 30 runs if we had batted well. Credit to the bowlers. They kept fighting, and we could not finish the job," he added.
Rain repeatedly interrupted the match, and although Hardik acknowledged the disruptions were far from ideal, he stressed the need to adapt.
"The ground, in the first innings, was not wet, but post that, throughout, the ball kept getting wetter. Not sure if it helped us or not; it was difficult. Rain kept coming in, not ideal to have stoppages and start again. But the game goes on; we had to play a game (in the end), and we definitely did," he concluded.
MI next faces PBKS in Dharamshala on May 11, while GT faces off against DC in Delhi the same day in an evening match.
(PTI inputs)