IPL 2021: MI captain Rohit Sharma explains why teams batting second have struggled at MA Chidambaram Stadium
Rohit Sharma has offered his views on why chasing a target has been difficult in IPL 2021 matches at MA Chidambaram Stadium. The Mumbai Indians skipper believes the slow nature of the deck in Chennai hasn't allowed the batters to go hard on the bowlers.
During a brief chat at the post-match presentation after his team's win over Sunrisers Hyderabad, Rohit Sharma shared his experience of playing IPL matches in Chennai this year.
Sharma felt the spinners and the seamers have got a lot of assistance from the surface. As a result, scoring runs has been a bit difficult in Chennai compared to other grounds.
"I think it is because of the pitch getting slower and slower. You can see when Rahul (Chahar) was bowling, he was turning the ball even in his fourth over, which was I think 13th or 14th over, which is not the case when you play in Mumbai. Bowlers are always in the game till the 20th over, and even the seamers, it is not easy to just get away from them. In a few games, the ball was reversing as well and the slowness of the pitch makes it harder for the batter to just come and slog straightaway," Rohit Sharma said.
Rohit Sharma added that if the batsmen played a bit smartly and focused on finding gaps, the scoring rate could improve.
Rohit Sharma feels MI batsmen can bat better in the middle overs
During the interview, Rohit Sharma spoke about the importance of utilizing the powerplay properly at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. He pointed out how MI and SRH tried to make the most of the fielding restrictions in the first six overs.
While Rohit believes his batsmen did a good job in these conditions, he added they could improve on this particular aspect a bit in the upcoming matches.
"When you play on a pitch like that, we saw both teams trying to capitalize on that two fielders outside (the circle), trying to take the aerial route. But again, having said that, I still feel we can bat a little better in the middle overs. We've got the ability to do that. All these guys have played enough cricket on pitches like that. So, I think there is some work that we need to in that middle overs," Rohit Sharma added.
The Mumbai Indians will play their next IPL 2021 match against the Delhi Capitals in Chennai on April 20.