In the IPL 2023 match between Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore, Mumbai captain Rohit Sharma praised left-handed batter Tilak Varma for his unbeaten 84 off just 46 balls. However, he admitted that the rest of the batting line-up didn’t perform well on a pitch that was good for batting. Mumbai Indians struggled to play the catch-up game after being pushed into batting first and crumbled to 48/4 and then to 123/7 at one stage. Varma stood tall and impressed everyone with his skill and temperament, hitting nine boundaries and four sixes at a strike-rate of 182.6, as Mumbai got 69 runs from the last five overs. Mumbai’s bowlers were all over the place as Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis smashed half-centuries in a 148-run opening partnership. Though they got two wickets, it was too late by then to avoid a loss in their opening match of IPL 2023. Rohit refused to use the absence of Jasprit Bumrah as a reason behind lacklustre bowling performance. Du Plessis, who was named Player of the Match for his 73 off 43 balls, including five fours and six sixes, felt great in playing a part in making a happy homecoming for RCB.
