It’s always a case of ‘so close, yet so far’ for the Mumbai Indians (MI) this season in the IPL. They faced another tough loss on the road against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on Friday, going down by 12 runs. This defeat marks their third straight loss in away games so far this season. LSG set a target of 203-8, and despite a strong fight with Suryakumar Yadav scoring 67 runs and Hardik Pandya adding a quick 28, MI could only reach 191-5.
Hardik had a standout game, taking his first five wickets in T20s before scoring his late runs. Unfortunately, his efforts weren’t enough as LSG delivered a solid performance in the final overs, giving Rishabh Pant his first home win since becoming captain of the team.
With MI needing 22 runs in the last over, Hardik started strong by hitting a six on the first ball, bringing it down to 16 needed off five. But Avesh Khan stepped up, only allowing three runs after that, leaving Hardik frustrated as he tossed his bat after the game.
After the match, Pant praised Mitch Marsh for setting a strong foundation that helped the middle-order. He acknowledged it was tough against an aggressive MI side but felt they kept their cool to seal the win.
Hardik, missing out on a hat-trick, was pleased with his bowling. He mentioned, ‘I enjoy bowling. I might not have many options, but I try to read the wicket and play smart. I’m not chasing wickets; I want batters to make mistakes.’
He added, ‘As a team, we didn’t perform well enough today. We win together and lose together. I take full responsibility.’ Currently, MI sits in seventh place out of ten teams, with only two points from four matches.