SPORTS

Great sporting teams prepare for a period of transition.

Watching proceedings on Friday at the Brabourne Stadium, you wondered if Mumbai Indians were in the middle of one. Kieron Pollard, finisher supreme, white-ball destroyer and bonafide T20 legend, seemed a pale shadow of the big-hitter he once was.

Tim David, among their costliest signings at the mega auction, meanwhile stepped up to play the kind of role Pollard has for more than a decade. It made you wonder why he's played just four games this season when he could've easily played more. Remember, Mumbai fielded just three overseas players in one match, and two in another.

Five-time champions Mumbai Indians became the first team in IPL 2022 to be knocked out of the race for playoffs. As the team aim to finish the season on a high, Mumbai's head coach Mahela Jayawardene pointed out prime reasons behind the disappointing season. The Srilankan pointed out that captain Rohit Sharma's form and poor team structure cost them big time this season. 

The mediocre bunch of domestic players like Basil Thampi, Jaydev Unadkat, and Murugan Ashwin along with purely sentimental retentions like Kieron Pollard and an insane bid of INR 15.25 crore for Ishan Kishan have all contributed to MI's downfall.

"For a team to work, it is not about just one individual, it is about a team executing a game plan. The way we have structured our line-up this season is something we have lacked," Jayawardene said when asked about Rohit Sharma's poor run of form in the nine games.

When Virat Kohli pushed a ball to the left of cover in the sixth over where it was half-stopped after a dive, he set off for a single. His partner Faf du Plessis wasn’t so sure; he stuttered mid-way, taking a couple of dragging steps, as he waited for a signal from Kohli. It didn’t come but eventually they crossed safely.

Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis take a run during RCB vs CSK match. (Source: iplt20.com)

Once he was at the other end, du Plessis signalled to Kohli to shout out his intention. He even walked across to have a chat and as Kohli seemingly suggested he was waiting to see if the ball was stopped cleanly or not, du Plessis gently shook his head with a smile, and once again gave the signal that he should speak up his intent. Both smiled, and went back to their respective places. The pair had been off to a brisk start, largely through edged boundaries at the start, but were beginning to settle down by the end of the Powerplay. Sriram Veera

Kolkata Knight Riders broke a five-match losing streak in IPL 2022 and returned to winning ways with a seven-wicket victory over Rajasthan Royals at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium on Monday. KKR once again went in with a changed Playing XI but this time, the move worked as both additions performed decently well. Anukul Roy replaced Venkatesh Iyer and returned 1/28 from four overs whereas Shivam Mavi bagged 1/33. (Also Read: Nitish Rana steers KKR to seven-wicket win over Rajasthan Royals)

Sunil Gavaskar share his thoughts about KKR's 27-year-old batter.

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) defeated Rajasthan Royals (RR) by seven wickets in Match 47 of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 season, at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, on Monday. Chasing a target of 153 runs, KKR reached 158 for three in 19.1 overs with Nitish Rana and Rinku Singh playing unbeaten knocks. Rana smacked 48 runs off 37 balls and Rinky hammered 42 runs off 23 deliveries as KKR ended their losing streak. Earlier, RR posted 152 for five in 20 overs, courtesy of a half-century by captain Sanju Samson. Tim Southee was in good form for KKR and bagged two wickets in four overs