King Shreyas’ experience, nous, acumen and ability to the fore

Quickly: Beyond both representing their respective countries, what is the iconic, unforgettable, eminently forgettable (for the two protagonists, that is) common thread that binds Ollie Pope and Washington Sundar together?

If you said embarrassingly having their stumps splattered by magical yorkers from Jasprit Bumrah, allow yourself a pat on the back. Or not, really. After all, the images of those two searing deliveries are etched in our memories, Pope’s flabbergasted consternation matched only by Sundar lying on his stomach, wondering where that missile had come from, without warning.

Actually, strike out ‘embarrassingly’, too. What’s so embarrassing about being schooled by the best in the business, bar none? About being told emphatically who the master is? About being reminded of being in the presence of greatness? Jasprit Bumrah, without question, is all this and more.

As always, Bumrah held the key to Mumbai Indians’ slip-sliding fortunes at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday night. He had seen his batters stack up 203 for six in a knockout game, in Qualifier 2 of IPL 2025, against a side that was making its first appearance in the playoffs since 2014, and which had been swatted aside by Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Qualifier 1 three nights previously.

Their abject capitulation against Josh Hazlewood and company must have come as a chastening wake-up call for Punjab Kings, whose status as league toppers counted for nothing when they were blown away for 101 in front of their home fans in Mullanpur on Thursday. Leggie Suyash Sharma was the Player of the Match officially, but the damage up front was wreaked by Hazlewood, among whose victims was Shreyas Iyer, the Kings’ inspirational captain.

Shreyas’ ill-advised hoick with his team already two down in the PowerPlay wasn’t the most edifying sight. In a team full of uncapped Indian batters – Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, Nehal Wadhera and Shashank Singh, among them – Shreyas stood out with his experience, his nous, his acumen, his ability. The ungainly stroke against Hazlewood was out of character. It must have rankled. When he came out on Sunday at No. 4 at the beginning of the final over of the PowerPlay, his side had rattled along to 55 in 5.1 overs, though they must have felt they had given away one wicket too many.

The second ball he received, from Ashwani Kumar who was on a high after accounting for Arya, went away from Shreyas with the left-armer’s angle from over the stumps. Slightly short, climbing a little over waist height. Shreyas rocked back and casually, nonchalantly, dismissively deposited it over square-leg for four, no hint of violence, let alone being troubled by the bounce.

A few overs later, Shreyas took a shine to Reece Topley, the towering Englishman playing his first match of the season. Like Ashwani and Trent Boult before him, Topley is also a left-arm quick; unlike the other two, he is remarkably tall – 2.01 metres, or six feet seven inches. Understandably, he is the hit-the-deck kind of bowler and hit the deck he did, until the Shreyas bat hit the ball and sent it soaring over deep backward square. That was off the second ball of the 13th over; the next two were fuller but dealt the same treatment as the shorter ball. One was smashed over long-on, the other creamed back over the bowler’s head. A hat-trick of sixes, Shreyas was purring, the Kings were cock-a-hoop, Mumbai Indians, the five-time former champions, were rocked.

Shreyas’ comrade-in-arms during a match-turning fourth-wicket stand of 84 was stylish left-hander Wadhera, but when he and Shashank departed within 13 runs of each other, the task became a little harder. Punjab needed 36 off 20 deliveries with five wickets in hand – regulation, maybe, but six of those would be sent down by Bumrah.

The champion quick hadn’t had a great night. Coming off a magnificent spell of one for 27 from four overs in the Eliminator against Gujarat Titans, he was taken for 20 in his first over by Josh Inglis, the feisty wicketkeeper-batter. How could you, Josh? Did you even know who was bowling?

Bumrah’s lone success against the Titans on Friday was the hapless Washington, who had blazed to 48 off 23, dominating a third-wicket alliance of 84 with Sai Sudharsan. The two Chennai lads were threatening to derail Mumbai when Hardik Pandya tossed Bumrah the ball in the 14th over and struck paydirt. Bumrah willed a ball that started well outside leg-stump to curl in the air, snake between the left-handed Washington’s legs and rattle timber. It was an extraordinary delivery even by Bumrah standards, leaving the batter splayed on the ground, ‘doing push-ups’ as Ravi Shastri colourfully described on air.

That dismissal immediately transported one to Visakhapatnam and the second Test against England in February 2024. Despite leading by 190 in the first innings in the first game in Hyderabad, India had somehow courted defeat, by 28 runs, after a surreal 196 by Pope, dotted liberally by sweeps and reverse-sweeps that left R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel scratching their heads. The momentum with them, England started brightly in Vizag as they replied to India’s 396 when, with a slightly old and seriously reversing SG Test ball, Bumrah got down to business. In a memorable burst, he knocked over Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow, but it was what he did between those two dismissals that stunned the cricket world.

Pope had eased to 23 when Bumrah charged in and let fly. From the confines of the press box more than 100 yards away, one had an unchecked view of the trajectory of the ball as it started way outside off when it left the bowler’s hand and kept coming in. And in. And in. Pope did everything he could, but he seemed to be operating in slow motion.

The Exocet found its mark, sneaking under his bat and plucking out middle and leg. Pope’s face, horrified, mortified, admiring and benumbed all at the same time, told the tale better than a million words could.

Sundar, and Pope before him, aren’t exceptions. Bumrah has destroyed stumps and egos numerous times with that famous yorker, across formats internationally and repeatedly in the IPL.

Calm and composed

When Pandya threw the ball to Bumrah – a final throw of the dice? – for the latter’s final over, Punjab required 31 from 18 deliveries, Shreyas (then 57 off 30) holding the key.

Common sense dictated that you see off the over with minimal damage. Get six or seven, if possible, and get the biggest threat out of the way. 25 from two was eminently gettable when Bumrah wasn’t bowling.

Bumrah’s first ball of his last over, to Marcus Stoinis, was an attempted yorker, squeezed into the covers for a single. Shreyas on strike, the moment of truth. Everybody knew what was coming, but knowing is one thing, dealing with it quite another altogether.

And so Bumrah shrugged his shoulders, setting off on the familiar walk-run, attacking the crease and delivering the perrrfect yorker. Keep it out, Shreyas, keep it out. Keep it out? Shreyas brought his bat down calmly, unhurriedly, opening the face, guiding the ball past short third-man, sending it scurrying along the turf for a four. That was when the deal was sealed. Sure, 26 still needed off 16, but the most dangerous ball in contemporary cricket had been dealt with in unfussed sensational fashion; the balance of power had swung perceptibly, irrevocably, unquestionably.

The rest is what one would call routine business, inasmuch as four sixes an over can be termed so. Ashwani, who has had a terrific breakthrough season, was treated with absolute disdain by Shreyas, in such tearing hurry that 23 needed from 12 balls became zero needed with a full over to go. There was a touch of finality to how the denouement came, a full and slightly wide (outside off) ball from the left-arm pacer hammered over long-on for the most decisive of blows. For the first time in IPL history, for the first time in 19 attempts, Mumbai Indians had failed to successfully defend a 200-plus total. They knew they had witnessed the most special of innings, but that was no consolation for Pandya and his troops, shell-shocked and disbelieving as the last of Shreyas’ eight sixes dumped them out of the tournament.

This was the proverbial, cliched ‘captain’s knock’, if ever there was one. Earlier in the season, in a gesture that spoke volumes, Shreyas turned down the opportunity to go for his maiden IPL century, encouraging, goading, almost coercing Shashank to refrain from picking up an easy single and offering his skipper the strike. Against Gujarat Titans, Shreyas had reached 90 at the end of the 17th over but neither asked for, nor coveted or hogged the strike. When Shashank looked up at the score board after striking Mohammed Siraj for a four off the first ball of the last over, he was rattled when he saw ‘97’ against Shreyas’ name. The skipper was quickly in his ear, asking him to forget about everything else and focus on taking the bowler apart. Shashank obliged – 23 came off the final over during which he alone was on strike, Shreyas remained proudly unconquered on 97, Punjab’s final margin of victory was 11. From such deeds are the legends of inspiration born.

Shreyas will already have put Sunday’s unbeaten 87 to bed. Clearly, he has pushed the disappointment of not being picked for the England Tests to the back of his mind, at least for the time being, because he is aware of the magnitude of the immediate task at hand. He is already the first captain to take three different franchises to an IPL final.

On Tuesday against a rampant RCB unit, he will tilt at history again. Twelve months back, he hauled Kolkata Knight Riders to their third crown. A maiden triumph with one of the eight original franchises is perhaps no more than he deserves. Say what, RCB?