Mumbai Indians pacer Trent Boult, who on Friday took four wickets against Chennai Super Kings (CSK), has emphasised the importance of picking up early wickets on the Sharjah wicket.
Thanks to Boult’s fiery spell of 4/18 and valuable contributions from Jasprit Bumrah and Rahul Chahar, Mumbai Indians restricted Chennai Super Kings for an embarassing total of 114/9.
Chasing the target, an unbeaten opening stand between Ishan Kishan (68 off 37 balls) and Quinton de Kock (46 off 37) helped Mumbai Indians in registering a 10-wicket win with more than 7 overs to spare.
Boult was being interviewed by Bumrah in a video put up by IPLT20.com.
Bumrah asked Boult about the mindset before going into bowl, considering that the Sharjah ground is small and there is dew.
“There have been some big scores in Sharjah. I was just looking to be as clear as I could. We do a lot of planning and scouting on certain players, like when they like to hit the ball. It has been a good day,” said Boult after picking the man of the match award.
“It was nice to pick some wickets from both ends, we all know how important early wickets in the format are. Some days we don’t get that happening. But, obviously it was nice to get the team off to a good start,” he added.
While Boult picked four, Bumrah took two for 25. Together, they reduced CSK to 24 for five in the first six overs of power-play.
With Friday’s comprehensive win, three-time champions Mumbai have gone atop the table with 14 points. Although Delhi Capitals and Royals Challengers Bangalore also have 14 points, they are placed second and third respectively on net run rate.