Rohit Sharma made the most of his chances in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 Eliminator between Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Titans on Friday in Mullanpur as the 38-year-old showed he has still got it. The right-hander, who has had a mixed-bag season, unleashed his best in the crucial do-or-die encounter, scoring 81 runs off 50 balls, paving the way for Mumbai Indians to post more than 220 runs on the board.
This total proved too much for Gujarat Titans to chase as Shubman Gill and co fell 20 runs short. Rohit Sharma was adjudged as Player of the Match for his performance and while speaking to the host broadcaster, Rohit addressed his mixed 2025 season for the franchise, saying he would have liked to score more half-centuries.
In the Eliminator, Rohit Sharma got two reprieves inside the powerplay as Gerald Coetzee and Kusal Mendis dropped relatively easy catches. Coetzee dropped a sitter off the bowling of Prasidh Krishna while wicketkeeper Mendis put one down off the bowling of Mohammed Siraj.
"I have got only four fifties. I would have definitely liked to score more. It was a good day for us as a team. I do understand the importance of playing this Eliminator, going through this and taking the next step forward. Really proud of a complete team effort," said Rohit Sharma at the post-match presentation.
"To be honest, I have played those shots before in the tournament and unfortunately, I have found fielders. Somewhere down the line, you got to be lucky, and today was that day for me. I got lucky as those catches were dropped. But even after that, you got to play. I was focussing on keeping the momentum and tempo going," he added.
{{/usCountry}}"To be honest, I have played those shots before in the tournament and unfortunately, I have found fielders. Somewhere down the line, you got to be lucky, and today was that day for me. I got lucky as those catches were dropped. But even after that, you got to play. I was focussing on keeping the momentum and tempo going," he added.
{{/usCountry}}Rohit Sharma had an underwhelming start to the IPL 2025 season, as he was unable to buy a run. However, the fixture against Chennai Super Kings turned the around for him as he played an unbeaten knock of 76.
Rohit praises Jonny Bairstow's knock
Jonny Bairstow, who was named as a replacement player for Ryan Rickelton, stitched together an opening partnership of 84 runs for the opening wicket with Rohit Sharma. The right-hander was eventually dismissed on 47 by Gujarat Titans spinner Sai Kishore.
Speaking about Bairstow, Rohit said, "Jonny, I have watched him over the years being on the other side. It was nice to be on the same side and have a crack at it. We know the quality he has, a lot of experience playing in this format, and we know what he can do upfront, and this is exactly what he did," said Rohit.
"Never looked like he was playing his first game for this franchise. Got settled in pretty well. He took his chances and it came off. Good start, we always look for that start and we capitalised on that," he added.
Mumbai Indians defended 228 after restricting Gujarat Titans to 208 in 20 overs. The five-time champions will now take on Punjab Kings in Qualifier 2 at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
RCB have already qualified for the final after getting the better of PBKS in Qualifier 1.