IPL 2018: Sportzwiki's Man of the Match - Ishan Kishan

Ishan Kishan was very much in the spotlight, the moment Mumbai Indians went for him in the IPL auction.

And he has proved to be more than just a sound keeper. A 21-ball 62 earned his team two vital points and a run rate that will help them in the upcoming games.

Chasing 211, the hosts were down to 93/8 at one stage before getting bundled out for 108.

Each of the Mumbai bowlers picked wickets. All-rounder Krunal Pandya trapped Kuldeep Yadav to end the contest, as the batter tried to sweep the ball and in the process, gave away his wicket.

Post the game, Ishan said skipper Rohit Sharma just told him to back himself and play his natural game. The southpaw had shuffled a few places in the line-up, but he said it doesn’t matter and he is fine batting anywhere.

“I had a chat with my skipper. He just asked me to back myself and play the way I have when I’ve scored runs. I just wanted to look at the ball and keep smacking it. You have to believe in yourself, back your strengths. I’m okay batting anywhere.” he said.

Rohit all praise for the talented youngster

Rohit too praised the youngster for the match-winning knock. On being asked to pick the main difference that stood out between the two sides, he said,

“Without doubt Ishan Kishan’s knock, his fearless knock was the turning point. Hitting wasn’t easy; the ball was sticking in. He just came in and changed momentum. Credit to him, he was waiting for this knock, wanted to come out.”

Mumbai are now at the fourth spot, one place ahead of KKR. The purple and gold unit won both the tosses but lost the encounters, making it eight straight defeats against Rohit’s side. They will have their task cut-out in the coming week.