Rohit Sharma has credited Mumbai Indians’ discipline on and off the field throughout the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) for their success in the tournament in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Rohit Sharma led the team to their fifth IPL glory with a 5-wicket victory over Delhi Capitals in the final of the 2020 edition of the tournament on Tuesday.
“First of all, big congratulations to all of us. It was a great season for us, our season did not start in August and we started preparing way before. I remember it was during some tough times in June, we started preparing and it was never going to be easy,” Rohit said inside the Mumbai Indians dressing after the win, the video of which was posted on the official Twitter handle of the franchise.
“Once we came here, it was a new environment for us, not going outside the hotel, not enjoying the culture but we were disciplined as a team and we were disciplined on the field as well. That’s why we stand with the IPL trophy,” he added.
The MI skipper also expressed gratitude to the players who, despite not getting a chance to play in the tournament, provided the team with constant energy and enthusiasm.
“Guys who haven’t gotten to play at all in this tournament, I would like to thank them for their constant energy, they were quite positive and we never felt like that they were disappointed to not be in the playing XI,” the 32-year-old said.
Chasing Delhi’s total of 156/7, Rohit smashed 68 runs off 51 balls. He got generous support from Quinton de Kock (20 off 12) and Ishan Kishan (33 off 19) with whom he shared partnerships of 45 runs and 47 runs respectively. Suryakumar Yadav (19 off 20) was also a part of a 45-run stand with Rohit.
Batting in their first-ever IPL final, Delhi Capitals were off to a poor start. They were reduced to 22/3 inside just five overs.
However, a 96-run partnership between captain Shreyas Iyer (65 off 50) and Rishabh Pant (56 off 38) ensured a healthy total for their team.