IPL 8: How Mumbai Indians came from down under to enter play-offs

Mumbai Indians have played like cornered tigers After losing four matches in a row at the start of Indian Premier League8 few would have expected Rohit Sharma amp Co to finish second in the points tally at the end of the league phaseWith every game almost like a doordie situation after their four defeats Mumbai Indians surprised everyone by winning seven out of their last eight matches to storm into the playoffs Today Mumbai Indians take on Chennai Super Kings who have entered the playoffs for the eighth time on the trot at the Wankhede Stadiummidday looks at Mumbai Indians turnaround and how their once wayward bowling inconsistent batting and occasionally sloppy fielding suddenly reversed at the right timeThe turning pointThe 20run win over Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Wankhede Stadium on April 25 was just the kind of win MI needed to boost their confidence Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma left Hardik Pandya Harbhajan Singh and Parthiv Patel right celebrate the wicket of Delhi Daredevils Angelo Mathews at Wankhede recently PicsATUL Kamble Suresh KKDefending 157 on a good batting track gave the MI bowlers the belief that was lacking And MI never looked back from here winning seven matches that included five wins inarow out of their last eight gamesMcClenaghan factorMitchell Johnson played a stellar role for MI during their 2013 IPL triumph And this time to another Mitchell mdash Kiwi leftarm medium pacer McClenaghan mdash delivered the goods with the ball MI first introduced McClenaghan in their fifth match against Royal Challengers Bangalore on April 19 Mitchell McClenaghan celebrates the wicket of SRHs Ravi BoparaHe has been the perfect ally from the other end for MIs chief pacer Lasith Malinga His 316 against Surnrisers Hyderabad was a decisive factor in Mumbai Indians clinching theplayoffs berth on Sunday The Kiwi pacer has claimed 14 wickets so far and is on par with offspinner Harbhajan SinghMalinga bounces backThe Lankan speedster who did not have a good World Cup campaign was a bit offcolour going into Mumbai Indians initial matches Malinga has been MIs pace mainstay over the years so his form was crucial He finally came good in the April 25 clash against SRH where he claimed 423 to stun David Warner amp Co Lasith Malinga bowls against KXIP at the Wankhede recentlyIn the last seven matches Malinga has claimed 13 wickets as compared to six in his first six IPL8 games The trio of Malinga McClenaghan and Harbhajan made MIs bowling more potent as the tournament progressedNo more opening bluesThe opening partnership was one of the crucial aspects that the Mumbai Indians were unable to set right They were frequently losing both openers inside the Powerplay However the experiment of partnering Parthiv Patel with Lendl Simmons worked after a few hiccups initially Opener Lendl Simmons left and Parthiv Patel during their 111run stand against Kings XI Punjab in Mohali on May 3 Pic PTIBCCIWhile Simmons has consistently scored at the top 407 runs in 11 innings Patel has been scratchy in most of his 12 innings However the Gujarat skippers unbeaten 51 against SRH on Sunday would have come as a huge relief for the MI campPollard powerKieron Pollard has rarely disappointed when the chips are down He may not have a big score yet in IPL8 to attract attention but his little contributions have been gamechanging nevertheless Kieron Pollard celebrates MIrsquos win over Knight Riders last weekPollards last over heroics against Kolkata Knight Riders where he conceded only six runs and saw his team win by five runs last Thursday at the Wankhede Stadium was incredible considering the West Indian had last bowled for MI over a month ago His ability to handle pressure is probably the reason MI have so much faith in PollardDisciplined bowlingMumbai Indians have looked into the minutest of areas to get back to winning ways From bowling 16 extras in a match against RCB on April 19 the MI bowlers have consciously cut down on freebies In the last six matches MI have bowled six extras on an averageMiddle order impactAmbati Rayudu 235 runs in 12 innings and Hardik Pandya 111 runs in six innings have played vital roles in giving MI the extra push in the death overs Ambati Rayudu en route his unbeaten 27ball 53 against Rajasthan Royals on May 1Rayudus unbeaten 53 vs RR on May 1 helped MI score 187 while his unbeaten 49 helped MI see off Delhi Daredevils on May 5 with just three balls to spare Pandya has been a revelation with his ability to hit big shots at will His powerpacked 61 not out vsKKR helped MI put up a fighting total of 171