Mumbai Indians (MI) defeated Gujarat Titans (GT) by 20 runs in a high-scoring IPL 2025 Eliminator at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium, Mullanpur on Friday (May 30).

Opting to bat first, the five-time champions posted an imposing 228/5 on the board. Rohit Sharma capitalised on early chances to play a pivotal knock of 81 from 50 balls, while his opening partner Jonny Bairstow (47 off 22) made an instant impact on debut for MI.

After securing a spot in Qualifier 2, MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene hailed Rohit for his match-winning contribution in the knockout fixture.

“RO batted brilliantly. I think he took his time a little bit, letting Jonny take control initially. And then, when he knew it was his time, he got into a brilliant tempo. The pressure that he put on Sai [Kishore] and Rashid [Khan] in that situation was absolutely brilliant," Jayawardene said in the post-match presser.

“In big games, he does have a different gear that he plays. That’s what experience does, and you cannot replace that,” he added.

Defending the total, MI restricted GT to 208/6 in 20 overs. Jasprit Bumrah was the stand-out bowler, returning with the figures of 1 for 27 in his four overs.

Jayawardene opened up on his team’s smart tactical shift to a barrage of yorkers after recognising that the slower deliveries weren’t working.

“We couldn’t get our grip. Planning-wise, we changed our plans to bowl yorkers as much as we could because the length balls were skidding through. The variations were not happening. I think it was a tough last 10 overs for us, but the experienced heads held together and we executed brilliantly,” Jayawardene stated.

“When you have a winning culture, it’s easier to try and have that same thing going through. We have a very experienced core group within our ranks. That winning mentality itself comes through from those senior players. Players who have won trophies do help. My job is to try and cultivate the new guys who are coming into the squad. After the big auction, we had quite a few new faces. I think telling them about how we operate and having that attitude that we’ll never die from a situation always works,” he remarked.

With this victory, the Hardik Pandya-led side set up a Qualifier 2 clash against Punjab Kings in Ahmedabad on June 1. The winner will face Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the IPL 2025 final at the Narendra Modi Stadium on June 3.