IPL 2021: MI have to be at their best against SRH, says Rohit Sharma as play-offs hopes brighten

IPL 2021: Mumbai Indians boosted their chances of reaching the play-offs as they hammered Rajasthan Royals by 8 wickets in Sharjah on Tuesday. Rohit Sharma’s men gunned down a 91-run target in just 8.2 overs to boost their Net Run Rate. Mumbai Indians hammered Rajasthan Royals by 8 wickets to boost their play-offs hopes (Courtesy of BCCI)HIGHLIGHTSMumbai Indians jumped to the 5th spot after their 8-wicket win on TuesdayMI chased down a 91-run target in just 8.2 oves vs RRMI take on SRH on Friday as their play-offs hopes remain aliveMumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma said the defending champions will not take Sunrisers Hyderabad lightly when the two teams meet in their final group-stage match of IPL 2021.

The 5-time champions boosted their play-offs hopes after they hammered Rajasthan Royals by 8 wickets in Match 51 in IPL 2021 on Tuesday. MI gunned down a 91-run target in just 8.2 overs after they skittled out the Royals for 90 for 9 in 20 overs, the lowest total posted in Sharjah in IPL.MI hammer RR: IPL 2021 HighlightsMumbai Indians jumped to the 5th spot from the 7th spot and their NRR received a huge boost after their hammering of Rajasthan Royals.Mumbai Indians will next face Sunrisers Hyderabad, who are reeling at the last spot in the IPL 2021 points table, on Friday, the final match day of the group stage. MI will also be having an eye on Kolkata Knight Riders’ final match against Rajasthan Royals on Thursday as KKR have a better NRR than MI.”Not really to be honest (advantage playing a struggling Sunrisers?),” Rohit Sharma said.”In this tournament, all 8 teams are capable of beating anyone at any given stage. We have to be at our best to get what we want from that game. Good thing for us is KKR is playing before us and we will know exactly what to do.”Rajasthan Royals came up with an insipid batting performance with Nathan Coulter-Nile picked up 4 wickets. James Neesham, who replaced Quinton de Kock in the XI, stepped up and picked up 3 wickets while Jasprit Bumrah picked up 2 wickets.Rohit said Mumbai Indians wanted to seize the opportunity to boost their Net Run Rate after they restricted RR to 90. He had a word of praise for Ishan Kishan, who got back into the XI and showed signs of a return to form.Ishan Kishan hit a 25-ball 50 not out despite playing a maiden over to prove his naysayers wrong ahead of theT20 World Cup.”Once we had them bowled out for 90, we had a chance to finish it early. It is important to seize the game. We had to come out and bat freely. We had a chance to get the run rate in order,” Rohit said.”Ishan Kishan is playing after a couple of games. I was there to take the risks. We know his ability. We wanted him to spend some time and that is exactly what he did,” Rohit added.Click here for our site’s complete coverage of the coronavirus pandemic.