Mumbai Indians’ remarkable come-from-behind streak of results has relaunched it into familiar territory. Following its 81-run annihilation of Lucknow Super Giants in the Eliminator, Rohit Sharma’s side is within striking distance of a seventh IPL final.
While its batting firepower has managed to overcome the bowling shortcomings in the second half of the league stage, the five-time champion has quietly unearthed another talent in right-arm seamer Akash Madhwal.
The new colt from Mumbai’s classic stable of unheralded Indian talent, Madhwal, has romped to the top of the IPL bowling charts with a career-best five for five against LSG at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium here on Wednesday.
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On an uncharacteristic Chepauk surface that offered extra bounce, Madhwal’s skiddy lengths and seam movement confounded the batters, helping the 29-year-old equal Anil Kumble’s 14-year record for the best IPL bowling figures (five for five) by an Indian.
Madhwal has also healed Mumbai’s lingering death-overs bowling woes in Jasprit Bumrah’s absence, boasting the best economy rate (7.52) between overs 17 and 20 this season (min. 50 balls bowled).
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Madhwal’s graduation from tennis-ball cricket in 2018-19 to Uttarakhand’s limited-overs captain in the 2022-23 season has coincided with IPL net-bowling stints, first with Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2019.
Late into the 2022 IPL season, MI’s far-sighted management zeroed in on Madhwal as a replacement signing for an injured Suryakumar Yadav at his base price of ₹20 lakh. With 13 wickets from seven matches, Madhwal has reaffirmed the might of MI’s scouting secret sauce.