Mumbai Indians (MI) all-rounder Hardik Pandya thanked Punjab Kings (PBKS) pacer Mohammad Shami for hitting him with a pacy delivery during their teams’ clash, as he was awoken by the hit and then finished off the game for his team.

After getting hit by the bouncer, Hardik smashed two fours and a six in the penultimate over bowled by Mohammad Shami as his 40* off 30 balls saw MI snap a three-match losing streak successfully chasing down a target of 136 in 19 overs.

This was MI’s first win of the UAE leg of IPL 2021 and has helped them stay alive in the playoffs race.

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"To be honest, I will give credit to Mohammed Shami as well because the ball I got hit, I told Pollard that this woke me up and this changed things for me. Before that, I was finding it difficult. Over the period of time, I have realized when I make sure that every game, every opportunity is a new opportunity. You can be a hero and can make your team win. I forget what has happened in the past and I make sure to give my 100 percent," Hardik Pandya said in a video that was posted on iplt20.com.

Apart from Hardik, Saurabh Tiwary, who replaced Ishan Kishan in the XI, made 45 runs and Kieron Pollard contributed 15* apart from his 2 wickets earlier with the ball.

(ANI inputs)