Follow UsMumbai Indians earned a second shot at reaching the final by defeating Gujarat Titans by 20 runs in the Eliminator in Mullanpur, on May 30 (Friday). After posting a formidable 228, powered by Rohit Sharma’s 81, Jonny Bairstow’s 47 off 22 balls, and a late flourish from Hardik Pandya, Gujarat stayed in the hunt but ultimately fell short as Jasprit Bumrah proved unplayable.
Despite Sai Sudharsan's valiant 80, the early dismissal of his fellow opener Shubman Gill in the first over proved costly. Mumbai Indians head coach Mahela Jayawardene said Trent Boult’s early strike was a decisive moment. He added that with dew setting in, the team opted for yorkers over length balls, which were skidding on.
“We felt that batting first against GT is the right call. We played tactically. The way we batted, the tempo was great and we put runs on the board. The early wicket of Shubman was a massive one. Everything was going to plan, but halfway through, I saw the due coming in,” Jayawardene said in the post-match press conference.
“We couldn't get our grip. Planning-wise, we changed our plans to bowl yorkers as much as we could because the length balls were skidding through. The variations were not happening. I think it was a tough last 10 overs for us, but the experienced heads held together & we executed brilliantly.”
Mumbai didn’t have the best start to IPL 2025, but they now find themselves within touching distance of the final. Jayawardene highlighted that the winning mentality of senior players naturally rubs off on the younger members of the squad.
“When you have a winning culture, it's easier to try & have that same thing going through. We have a very experienced core group within our ranks. That winning mentality itself comes through from those senior players.
“Players who have won trophies do help. My job is to try & cultivate the new guys who are coming into the squad. After the big auction, we had quite a few new faces. I think telling them about how we operate and having that attitude that we’ll never die from a situation always works,” said the head coach.
“RO [Rohit] batted brilliantly. I think he took his time a little bit, letting Jonny take control initially. And then when he knew it was his time, he got into a brilliant tempo. The pressure that he put on Sai [Kishore] and Rashid [Khan] in that situation was absolutely brilliant. In big games, he does have a different gear that he plays. That's what experience does and you cannot replace that,” said Jayawardene.
Mumbai Indians have long been known for unearthing top-tier talent, and the 2025 season has introduced Indian cricket to a promising new star in Ashwani Kumar. The Mohali-born pacer has claimed nine wickets at an impressive average of 19.67 and played a crucial role in the win over Gujarat, earning the praise of his head coach.
“Ashwani is a great talent. I think the first season itself, the way he has responded to the challenges that we put him through, he's done brilliantly. BOOM, Deepak, Hardik, all those guys have those chats. It's all about execution under pressure and what we've seen from him. We plan to use him tactically when we need to against a given opposition.
“And, what you see is, not the full Ashwani. There's much more to come from him. And he's a fabulously skilled bowler. We just need to keep grooming him in the right direction,” Jayawardene added.