Mumbai Indians rode their luck to confirm a berth in the IPL 2023 playoffs. It was the Royal Challengers Bangalore’s defeat which has taken them to the playoffs for this season.
But to their credit, the five-time IPL champions did win their final group stage game against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the first match on Sunday (May 21). It was another assured and breathtaking run chase from the Paltans, who chased 200 runs in just 18 overs.
And it was Cameron Green who scored a superb century to take them home. The Australian batter proved his class and amassed an unbeaten 100 off just 47 balls. His knock dismantled SRH and gave MI a chance for the playoffs, which was confirmed later as RCB suffered a loss at home.
Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan hailed Green’s batting display against SRH and says the lanky Australian can become an asset for the Paltans in coming matches. He also suggested the young Australia all-rounder should bat at number three in the coming games.
“MI invested big money in Cameron Green (at the IPL Auction) and the big-hitter didn’t disappoint,” Pathan said on Star Sports Cricket Live.
“He’s a potential match-winner for MI. He should be batting at number three for MI in the coming games because pitches in Chennai and Ahmedabad will not be easy to bat like Wankhede. Green can come in at number three and SKY can be the number four batter on slow pitches,” the former India player added.
MI will be taking on Lucknow Super Giants in the Eliminator of IPL 2023 on Wednesday (May 24) at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The winner of the match will then have to play the loser of Qualifier 1 (GT vs CSK) in order to reach the Final.
