‘Good Not to Be On The Other End': Bumrah's Massive Praise to Romario Shepherd for Blistering Knock vs DC - WATCH

Mumbai Indians finally put an end to their nightmarish start to the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) as they defeated Delhi Capitals by 29 runs at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday, April 7. Mumbai Indians put on an incredible batting effort that was just too much for the Rishabh Pant-led side at the end. Ace MI pacer Jasprit Bumrah, who was once again in sensational form with the ball, scalped two wickets conceding 22 runs in his four overs. Bumrah was given an award in the dressing room by head coach Mark Boucher for his astounding performance. Later, the 30-year-old bowler jokingly mentioned that he was happy not to have bowled to Romario Shepherd.

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“It was really good to get a win. A very good atmosphere as well. We boys were a little fresh after the break we got. So, I’m really happy and a special mention to Romario [Shepherd] – it was really wonderful to see. Good not to be on the other end bowling to him but it was really good to see how he finished the game” Jasprit Bumrah was heard saying in a video shared by MI on social media platform X (formerly Twitter).

Batting first, MI posted 234 runs losing five wickets and this was the second-highest team total at the venue in IPL history. Former MI captain Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan set the tone early on by raising 80 runs for the opening stand; both the openers were unfortunate to not have scored a half-century, with Rohit getting out on 49 and Kishan returning to the dressing room scoring 42.

All the momentum MI had gathered in the first 10 overs waned gradually. It was a terrific comeback from the DC bowlers, led by Axar Patel and Anrich Nortje, as the MI middle order crumbled way too easily. Even the returning Suryakumar Yadav was kept quiet, sent back by Nortje for a two-ball duck.

Skipper Hardik Pandya and Tim David attempted to give MI the ideal finish in the death overs, but the wicket of the former once again jolted the MI onslaught in the death overs. Out came a certain West Indies talent who was signed in a trade deal ahead of the season.

Romario Shepherd, who played his first game of the season as a part of the MI XI, scored an unbeaten 39 off just 10 balls to help the five-time champions score a solid total. It was the final over, bowled by the impressive Anrich Nortje, which made the difference eventually. ‘4, 6, 6, 6, 4, 6’ read the scorecard for the final over as Shepherd belted Nortje to all parts of the ground in a merciless display of batting prowess. During the run chase, DC fell short by 29 runs.