"You didn't bring Jasprit Bumrah in the first 3 overs" - Aakash Chopra on the game-changing moments in Mumbai Indians' IPL 2024 loss vs SRH

Aakash Chopra reckons Hardik Pandya's improper utilization of Jasprit Bumrah was one of the contributing factors in the Mumbai Indians' (MI) IPL 2024 loss to the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH).

SRH set MI a monumental 278-run target after being asked to bat first in Hyderabad on Wednesday, March 27. Although the five-time champions tried their best to overhaul the record IPL score, they eventually fell short by 31 runs to suffer their second successive defeat.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra chose Travis Head's dropped catch at the start of his innings and Bumrah's late introduction into the attack as game-defining moments.

"Where all did the game change? Firstly, Travis Head's dropped catch by Tim David off Hardik's bowling," Chopra said. "It was a tough catch but it was dropped. I think that was one moment where the match changed. The second important moment was that you didn't bring Jasprit Bumrah in the first three overs. [12:55 onwards].

The former India batter pointed out that the SRH openers had the option of playing Bumrah cautiously after 22 runs were scored in the third over bowled by Kwena Maphaka.

"We wouldn't have been speaking about that if Travis Head had gotten out but when he wasn't, you gave the ball to a 17-year-old kid and then you brought him back," Chopra added. "He was going to get hit. When 40 runs are scored in the first three overs, guys defend when Bumrah comes to bowl."

Chopra noted that even though the Mumbai Indians conceded 148 runs in the first 10 overs, their premier bowler was given just one over in the first half of SRH's innings. He added that Shams Mulani bowling the last over implied that Hardik's calculation had gone wrong.

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"I thought he got a little too greedy" - Aakash Chopra on Ishan Kishan's dismissal during the Mumbai Indians' chase

Ishan Kishan was caught in the deep off Shahbaz Ahmed's bowling. [P/C: iplt20.com]

While praising Ishan Kishan for giving the Mumbai Indians a flying start, Aakash Chopra claimed that an overzealous approach led to his downfall.

"Chasing 277 runs was almost impossible. When you came to bat, Ishan Kishan was batting well," Chopra said. "I thought he got a little too greedy initially. He had hit a six. If he had stood there, they might have scored more than 80-85 in the first six overs. However, not a game-changing moment." [15:25 onwards]

While appreciating Naman Dhir and Tilak Varma for playing attacking knocks, the renowned commentator noted that Hardik Pandya's inability to maintain the momentum put the Mumbai Indians behind the eight ball.

"Rohit Sharma also got out but it was going neck to neck. Naman Dhir was batting very well. Tilak Varma's batting was absolutely outstanding," Chopra elaborated. "After that, Hardik's batting - a six off the second ball, a four off the third but after that, just could not get going. He was swinging his bat but runs weren't getting scored."

While Dhir scored a 14-ball 30, Varma smashed 64 runs off 34 deliveries. Hardik managed 24 runs off 20 balls and had the worst strike rate among all the Mumbai Indians batters.