“The senior guys need to step up, starting with me” - Rohit Sharma reflects on defeat to CSK

Mumbai Indians (MI) skipper Rohit Sharma admitted after the team’s defeat to Chennai Super Kings (CSK) that senior players in the franchise, including himself, need to step up.

MI went down to CSK by seven wickets in match number 12 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday, April 8.

Batting first after losing the toss, Mumbai posted 157/8 on the board, a target Chennai chased down in 18.1 overs.

MI’s batting unit failed for the second game in a row, with not a single player reaching the 40-run mark. Speaking at the post-match presentation, Rohit admitted:

"The senior guys need to step up, starting with me. We know the nature of IPL. We need to get some momentum, and if you don't, it is going to be tough. Just two games, not all is lost, but the senior guys need to step up with the bat. That's the nature of the tournament.

“If you win, you can win on the trot. If you lose, it will hamper the momentum.” He added, “We wanted to do a lot of things right. We have not been able to execute the things that we are speaking about in the change room.”

Rohit looked good with the bat, but was knocked over by Tushar Deshpande for 21 off 13 balls. Ishan Kishan top-scored with 32 off 21, while Tim David made 31 and Tilak Varma 22. Suryakumar Yadav failed again. He was out for one as he gloved a sweep to the keeper.

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“We have to learn and be more brave” - Rohit Sharma

Sharing his views on the team’s overall performance, Rohit opined that they need to learn from their mistakes and be braver in implementing their plans on the field. He elaborated:

"We have to do those things right. We know we had a very disappointing last season. You always start afresh. Even when we won five trophies, we never thought we won it last year. Every opposition is quality and you have to be the best to defeat them. These two games have happened now, you can't change. We have to learn and be more brave in doing stuff out in the field."

Defending 157, Mumbai got off to a good start with the ball as Jason Behrendorff cleaned up Devon Conway for a duck. However, Ajinkya Rahane scored a blazing 61 off only 27 balls to pave the way for CSK’s comprehensive win.