Five-time champions Mumbai Indians (MI) edged Gujarat Titans (GT) by 20 runs in a high-scoring IPL 2025 Eliminator despite a classy effort from Sai Sudharsan in Mullanpur on Friday night (May 30).

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Rohit Sharma (81 off 50) rode his luck to play a fine knock after Jonny Bairstow (47 off 22) made an instant impact on his Mumbai Indians debut to push them to an imposing 228 for five in 20 overs.

Sloppy Titans

GT, who were sloppy in the field and with the ball, were able to take the game down to the wire with sensational batting from Sudharsan (80 off 49) before falling short at 208 for six to exit the tournament.

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In the end, it was MI who won the key moments to advance in the competition. The victory took them to Qualifier 2 in Ahmedabad on Sunday (June 1) where they take on Punjab Kings (PBKS).

Despite heavy dew, overcoming such a steep target in a knock-out game needed a special effort, which came from Sudharsan who put his team on course for an improbable chase until his dismissal in the 16th over.

Bumrah removed Washington Sundar (48 off 24) with his trademark yorker before Sudharsan missed scoop against Richard Gleeson to see his stumps dislodged, bringing Mumbai Indians back into the game.

While it lasted, it was a delight to see Sudharsan go about his business. In a game of pure muscle, Sudharsan was a picture of elegance and found gaps all around the park with pinpoint precision.

GT needed 36 from 12

The equation came down to 36 from 12 balls with two left-handers Rahul Tewatia and Sherfane Rutherford in the middle.

Mumbai Indians debutant Richard Gleeson bowled the final over with Titans needing 24 runs and he bowled three immaculate deliveries to ensure victory before hobbling out due to hamstring issue.

In fact, Suryakumar Yadav, the vice-captain, was marshalling resources in the final over and it was a brave punt to bring Gleeson in for three deliveries knowing that he is in considerable discomfort. Once the target was out of reach, Surya took him off and asked left-arm seamer Ashwini Kumar to complete formalities.

Earlier, on a surface which had less grass compared to the one used on Thursday, Mumbai Indians decided to bat first, and the batters ensured the team goes into the break with an upper hand.

Titans dropped three crucial catches – two of Rohit (81 off 50 ) and one of Suryakumar Yadav (33 off 20) – and produced another ordinary effort with the ball in the knock-out fixture.

Rohit was dropped twice in the powerplay before the veteran made the opposition pay dearly for their on-field errors. On the first occasion, Gerald Coetzee dropped him in the deep, and Kusal Mendis’ GT debut went all awry when he bungled a regulation take behind stumps off Mohammed Siraj.

It was Bairstow (47 off 22), who gave Mumbai Indians the momentum in the powerplay with some sublime hitting.

The out-of-favour England batter, who joined the mighty Mumbai Indians days after collecting back-to-back fifties in county cricket for Yorkshire, took his chances early on and was well rewarded.

He targeted Titans’ best pacer of the season, Prasidh Krishna, plundering him for 26 runs in the fourth over of the innings that included three sixes. The first hit was a pull that comfortably sailed over square leg fence before picking the pacer for a clean hit down the ground.

Hardik’s strong finish

Rohit too got into the act when spinner Sai Kishore was introduced inside the powerplay. The former MI captain employed the sweep shot to perfection to collect two fours and a massive six to take his team to 79 for no loss in six overs, the team’s best powerplay of the season.

Most batters prefer to see out Rashid Khan, but having found his rhythm, Rohit even went after the star Afghanistan spinner. He first went for the inside out aerial drive before slog sweeping Rashid for a six. At 113 for one in 10 overs, Mumbai Indians looked unstoppable.

When Suryakumar joined Rohit in the middle, boundaries continued to flow. India’s T20 captain welcomed Gerald Coetzee into the attack with a couple of sixes, one a pull shot while the other was cut that just about cleared the ropes.

The confidence of the top-order also rubbed off on Tilak Varma (25 off 11), who has had an off-season by his standards. He smashed three sixes in quick time before falling to Siraj.

Skipper Hardik Pandya picked Coetzee for a couple of sixes in the 20th over to push the total past 225..

For the third innings in a row, the opposition team was able to amass a total in excess of 225 against the Titans, contributing their downfall.

(With agency inputs)