"They know their bowlers are not firing as a unit"- Jhulan Goswami hails MI's batting line-up for stepping up
Former Indian fast bowler Jhulan Goswami feels that although the Mumbai Indians (MI) have been inconsistent in their bowling, their star-studded batting line-up have been firing all cylinders in the IPL 2023.
After a slow star, MI seem to be peaking at the right moment as they chased two targets in excess of 210 on back-to-back occasions against the Rajasthan Royals and the Punjab Kings.
Responding to a Sportskeeda Query in a media interaction arranged by Jio Cinema, Jhulan Goswami, who is also an IPL expert and commentator for Bengali feed, explained just how well MI's batting has come together in sync at the right time. She said:
"Yes MI have given 200+ scores consistently, but these things happen. Nowadays even 200+ scores are chasable. The way the Mumbai batters have performed has been impressive. They know their bowlers are not firing as a unit so far. But their batters have scored well in almost each and every match so far. They have still performed as a team, are peaking at the right time and hopefully they continue to raise their bar."
Jhulan Goswami on Arjun Tendulkar's performance for MI
Jhulan Goswami also praised left-arm pacer Arjun Tendulkar for being impressive in whatever chances he has got this season with the Mumbai Indians. She feels it would be unfair to judge his impact so early by comparing it to what his father, Sachin Tendulkar, has achieved.
On this, Goswami stated:
"I would like to look at Arjun’s performances as an individual and he has done well in the past domestic season as well. Whenever he has gotten an opportunity, he has done well. People should not constantly compare him and tag him with the name of Mr. Sachin sir. It is not justified."
Speedster Jofra Archer also had a forgetful outing in his previous game against the Punjab Kings, where he conceded 56 runs off his four overs. However, Jhulan Goswami isn't too worried about Archer's form as she feels he will only get better with more game time under his belt. She added:
"Jofra is coming back from a long injury so the more he plays, he will get back gradually to his normal rhythm. Its tough when you come back from an injury. I used to get injured too and on my comeback the thought was always on the back of my mind that what if I get injured again as that would hamper the season. Those things work on your mind and can also affect your performance. He just needs to consistently hit the right areas."
Mumbai Indians, on the back of two morale-boosting victories, will face the arch-rivals Chennai Super Kings in Chepauk on Saturday.