IPL Play of the Day: Relief for Jasprit Bumrah after MI figure out right way to use cheat code

The Mumbai Indians in Ahmedabad is usually a horror story, but this time, the script flipped on the Gujarat Titans. And at the heart of it was a man who, until recently, looked like he was in a two-horse race with Ajinkya Rahane for the ‘Most Outstandingly Auraless Captaincy’ award.

Jasprit Bumrah hadn’t taken the new ball in the IPL since 2022. The moment he finally did, he needed just one delivery to end a five-innings wicket drought. We keep calling Bumrah the “X-factor,” but this season, he has often been treated more like a luxury kept in reserve than a weapon used upfront.

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“It's quite fascinating. I see a lot of people asking why Jassi isn't bowled up front, but he's only bowled the first over seven or eight times in his career,” Hardik Pandya said after the game. “So, it's not a Hardik Pandya problem; it's an ‘everybody’ problem. Bumrah is so special that you naturally want to save him for later.”

FROM DEJECTION TO DOMINANCE

Only days ago, there was footage doing the rounds of a frustrated Jasprit Bumrah staring into the distance from the boundary rope. Fast forward to Ahmedabad, and that mood flipped the moment he was handed the new ball against a Gujarat Titans top order most bowlers would rather avoid.

Charging in against Sai Sudharsan, Bumrah delivered one of those teasing full balls that shape away just enough. Sudharsan, caught in between, pushed at it with heavy feet and only managed a toe-ended slice.

The result? A straightforward catch for debutant Krish Bhagat inside the circle.

One ball, one wicket, drought ended, mood reset.

Of course, the stage had already been dramatically set by Tilak Varma, who had earlier “blown the brains out” of the Titans’ attack. His 45-ball maiden IPL century was as ruthless as it was unexpected, leaving GT staring at a 200-plus chase against a Mumbai side that usually thrives in such situations.

And just when Gujarat were still processing that task, Bumrah walked in to make things worse. If Tilak lit the fire, Bumrah made sure there was no way back.

What makes this the 'Play of the Day' is not just the wicket, but the decision behind it. This was only the seventh time in Bumrah’s IPL career that he opened the bowling. Before this, he had done it twice in 2014, three times in 2018, and once in 2022. Rare move, instant impact.

“That’s exactly what we’ve been asking for over numerous games now,” said Mitchell McClenaghan on the post-match show. “With no one else able to penetrate with the new ball, they needed Jasprit Bumrah to come out and be used as an attacking weapon.”

ENDING THE DROUGHT

Before this spell, Jasprit Bumrah was going through a phase that felt almost unnatural. A staggering 153 balls without a wicket. For someone widely regarded as India’s finest bowling asset since Kapil Dev, five wicketless matches was less a dip and more a puzzle no one could quite solve.

Which is why this call felt bigger than just a tactical tweak. Handing Bumrah the new ball turned out to be a potential “Play of the Season” moment for Mumbai Indians.

From bottom of the table with one win in five, MI rode Bumrah’s early breakthrough into a full-blown collapse, bowling GT out for their lowest total in IPL history.

Mitchell McClenaghan felt the plan was as much about timing as it was about intent.

“They used him in the first few overs to try and break that partnership. That was what was needed tonight against a top-three heavy team. Now, that may not be the plan you put out every game, some teams have stronger middle orders where you'll need him later—but tonight, it was spot on,” he said.

More than just two points, this felt like a reset for Mumbai Indians. The win lifted them to seventh on the table with four points and, perhaps more importantly, restored a bit of belief in a campaign that was beginning to drift. Next up, a familiar test awaits as they host Chennai Super Kings at the Wankhede on April 23, with a chance to build on this momentum.

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