Rohit Sharma's top 3 knocks for MI against PBKS

Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma, who has been in fine form this IPL, is not among the top run-getters but has been giving his team the kind of start they have come to expect from 'The Hitman'.

Rohit has so far amassed 135 runs in five matches for his side, but the most important part is that he has batted with a SR of 136.4 so far, which is far better than his 120.2 last season.

He was rightly criticized for not utilizing the powerplay overs last season, as his SR in those overs hovers around 124 in IPL 2022, but he has changed his approach this season and is striking at a fantastic SR of 150.7 in IPL 2023.

When MI faces a mercurial PBKS in the 31st match of IPL 2023 at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday, April 22, Rohit will be looking to continue his rejuvinated form against whom he averages 33.39 at a SR close to 140.

On that note, let's take a look at three of Rohit Sharma's best knocks against the Punjab Kings while playing for MI.

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Rohit Sharma's 3 best knocks for MI against PBKS

#3. 50 (30), Match 33, Mohali, 2012

On a slightly two-paced deck at Mohali, the Punjab Kings (then-Kings XI Punjab) were going nowhere in their innings as they struggled at 79/3 in the 13th over. The two Davids (Hussey and Miller) then started counter-attacking the MI bowlers and posted a more than competitive total of 168/3.

In reply, MI were also finding it difficult to score on the sluggish surface and were reeling at 66/3 in the 11th over.

The required run rate was close to 11, and MI batsmen needed to bat out of their skin to reach the target, which at that stage was looking improbable.

Rohit Sharma took the onus on himself and attacked spinners Bhargav Bhatt and Piyush Chawla to put the pressure back on the PBKS bowlers. The main highlight of his innings was his running between the wickets on a humid day.

He smacked three sixes and as many boundaries to complete his half-century in just 28 deliveries and put MI in a situation where they could think about winning the match.

Ambati Rayudu (34) and Robin Peterson (16) added 36 quickfire runs in just 13 balls to give MI a memorable win.

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#2, 70 (45), Match 13, Abu Dhabi, 2020

MI were struggling to get going on a flat Abu Dhabi pitch as they were rocked early by Punjab bowlers with some ordinary cricket at the start of the innings as they lost Quinton De Kock, Ishan Kishan, and Suryakumar Yadav within the 13th over, but their scoring rate was just above six.

Rohit Sharma, who opened the innings, watched his teammates struggle to time the ball.

After his initial struggle, he started to time the ball beautifully and was at his usual best, pulling, slogg-sweeping, and playing inside out to the spinners and pacers at will to disturb the lengths of the bowlers.

Rohit Sharma smacked 70 off 45 balls to propel MI's total to a formidable 191/4, which proved to be too much for the opponents as PBKS fell short of the target by 48 runs and were never in the chase.

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#1 79* (39), Match 41, Wankhede, 2013

On a spicy Wankhede pitch, where batsmen from both sides struggled big time, Rohit Sharma looked at ease.

MI were looking at a below-par score in the 150s when they were crawling at 43/2 in the ninth over. Rohit, who was batting at No. 4, never looked out of touch on a pitch where the ball was not coming onto the bat nicely. He smacked six sixes and as many boundaries, plundering 79 unbeaten runs in just 39 deliveries to help MI reach an above-par score of 174/3.

His knock proved to be the decisive factor as MI defeated PBKS by just four runs in a thriller.