Who said what: Top 3 experts' reactions to Akash Madhwal's 5/5 in LSG vs MI Eliminator of IPL 2023

Mumbai Indians (MI) progressed to Qualifier 2 of IPL 2023 by beating Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the Eliminator by 81 runs. MI's right-arm pacer, Akash Madhwal, was named the player of the match for his remarkable spell against LSG.

Akash was part of RCB in IPL 2021 as a net bowler before being whisked away by MI for the same role in IPL 2022. Later that season, he was signed as an injury replacement for Suryakumar Yadav by the Mumbai Indians.

Given the injury troubles faced by Jofra Archer and Jasprit Bumrah, Madhwal found himself thrusted into the spotlight. He has been used as an impact player to bowl in the death overs, and he impressed everyone with his ability to bowl consistent yorkers.

In 3.3 overs against LSG, Madhwal took five wickets while conceding only five runs at an incredible economy rate of 1.43. He was impactful throughout the second innings, taking wickets with the new ball, in the middle overs, and cleaning up the tail as well.

Madhwal registered the best bowling performance by an uncapped player, surpassing Ankit Rajput, who bowled a spell of 5/14 against SRH in 2018. He also became the first player to take a fifer in an IPL playoff game.

Reacting to his heroics, many cricket pundits applauded Akash Madhwal's performance and were full of praise for his unique skillset.

3 experts' reactions to Akash Madhwal's 5/5 in LSG vs MI Eliminator of IPL 2023

#3 "Bolwers like Madhwal are gold dust" - Sanjay Manjrekar

Sanjay Manjrekar touted Akash Madhwal as every franchise's dream. Manjrekar claimed Madhwal's ability to move the ball through the air and to bowl yorkers at will is gold dust for any team.

Manjrekar said (via ESPNcricinfo):

"What he has is a rare gift that every owner looks to have: a reliable death overs. He just bowled quickly and with a low release point."

"He is quick through the air, and his deliveries skidded off the pitch. He is one of the bowlers who can nail his yorkers on 4 or 5 out of 6 balls. This kind of bowler is gold dust."

#2 "Real Surprise Package" - Tom Moody

Tom Moody was all praise for Akash Madhwal's ability to extract pace from the pitch and termed him a surprise package for the batters. He also hopes for the youngster to get better with time as batters get accustomed to his bowling.

Moody, while talking at ESPNcricinfo, said:

"He was the kind of bowler who was gathering pace off the surface and hitting the pitch hard. and hits the second third of the stump, not the top of the stump. He was a nice surprise package, a real bonus for Mumbai Indians."

"It will be interesting how he will travel over time, with batsmen seeing him for a while, but he will be a challenge for sure."

#1 "Impressed with his pace" - Wasim Jaffer

Wasim Jaffer

@WasimJaffer14

When I was Uttarakhand Head Coach this boy came for trials. He was 24-25 and had only played tennis ball cricket. We were so impressed with his pace we roped him in right away! The year was 2019, and that boy was Akash Madhwal. Proud of how far he's come! #MIvsLSG #IPL2023

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When I was Uttarakhand Head Coach this boy came for trials. He was 24-25 and had only played tennis ball cricket. We were so impressed with his pace we roped him in right away! The year was 2019, and that boy was Akash Madhwal. Proud of how far he's come! #MIvsLSG #IPL2023 https://t.co/BH0RTeRKvz

Wasim Jaffer shared Akash Madhwal's journey from tennis ball cricket to the IPL via a tweet, where he mentioned that when the former Indian opener was the coach of Uttarakhand in 2019, the bowler came for trials and impressed him with his pace.

Jaffer also said that he is proud of Madhwal's success in IPL 2023.

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