IPL 2024 - Romario Shepherd wreaks havoc on DC bowlers, smashes 4,6,6,6,4,6 in final over

This is exactly what the Mumbai Indians (MI) needed, especially after three consecutive losses - someone to boost their innings towards the end. Romario Shepherd (39 off 10) wreaked havoc on the Delhi Capitals (DC) bowlers, especially in the final over against Anrich Nortje, whom he smashed for 4, 6, 6, 6, 4, 6 – tallying 32 runs in the over – at a staggering strike rate of 390. MI went on to post 234 runs, having lost five wickets in 20 overs at their home ground Wankhede Stadium. 

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Shepherd received great support from Tim David (45 off 21), who had a strike rate of 214, helping MI reach the total. Fans couldn't help but praise the West Indies batter, with many questioning why he was not part of the XI in previous games.

Regarding the clash, Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan had set the tone earlier, especially in the Powerplay. However, DC spinner Axar Patel ended the former MI skipper's innings on 49. This led to a streak of quick wickets, which saw MI slip to 121/4.

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Captain Hardik Pandya promoted himself to number 4 and was joined by Tim David, and they added another partnership. But the icing on the cake was the late heroics of Shepherd, as MI posted their third-highest team total of the season.

Highest team total for MI in the IPL

246/5 vs SRH, Hyderabad, 2024

235/9 vs SRH, Abu Dhabi, 2021

234/5 vs DC, Wankhede, 2024*

223/6 vs PBKS, Wankhede, 2017

Teams:

Mumbai Indians (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya(c), Tim David, Mohammad Nabi, Romario Shepherd, Piyush Chawla, Gerald Coetzee, Jasprit Bumrah

Subs: Akash Madhwal, Kwena Maphaka, Naman Dhir, Nehal Wadhera, Shams Mulani

Delhi Capitals (Playing XI): David Warner, Prithvi Shaw, Abishek Porel, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel, Lalit Yadav, Jhye Richardson, Anrich Nortje, Ishant Sharma, Khaleel Ahmed

Subs: Kumar Kushagra, Yash Dhull, Fraser-McGurk, Sumit Kumar, Praveen Dubey