After 56 league matches and 3 playoff games, we’re finally down to the IPL final. Captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Mahela Jayawardene attended the pre-final press conference to answer the media. They were joined by counterparts, Steven Smith and Stephen Fleming.

We performed consistently throughout the season but Mahela Jayawardene didn’t shy away from analyzing where they lacked as a side, “Pune gave us the wake-up call in the opening game, we realized we have to play better as a team, we made sure we get going and again they gave us the wake-up call during the season.”

The coach knows it’s not easy playing in different conditions and travelling through the country, “Home and away conditions are different. We had to go back to Bengaluru and we regrouped again to play good game of cricket.”

Rohit Sharma echoed his coach’s thoughts on team effort, “Like Mahela said, it’s been a team effort throughout the tournament. Whenever there was an opportunity, they’ve (players) put their hand up and taken the responsibility and obviously made sure the team crosses the line. We’ve certainly not had any individual brilliance throughout the tournament. It goes to show that team work is so much more important – whether it’s bowling or batting.”

There were several hiccups on the way, as Rohit acknowledges, “It’s important to know not everyone can have a good day every day. It’s important that guys come out at different times, put their hands up, take up the challenge and deliver. That’s what we have done throughout the season.” He isn’t bothered much by the senior players not having the best of seasons, “Honestly not really worried about the key players not delivering consistently as they haven’t had that many opportunities.”

When asked about Mahela, Rohit Sharma was all praises, “Obviously, he’s experienced, he’s been in such situations many times before. He’s led Sri Lanka successfully over the years and Has been a part of franchisee cricket.” The skipper had called it prior to the start of the tournament, “Mahela’s experience will be a key to our success. He’s played enough cricket and knows what team needs whenever you have the momentum, whenever you lose the game or whenever you win the game.”

Keeping the momentum is crucial and not getting carried away is the key. Rohit opines, “It was important and he made sure we keep calm and not get too excited. These are the things you learn from a player with experience.”

It could potentially be Rohit Sharma’s third title with us but he isn’t focussing on his personal milestones, “The whole focus has to be in playing the right game. It’s important for me to make sure all of us play cricket how we are expected to play. To continue to perform how we’ve been performing throughout the season.  As a captain it’s my duty, my responsibility to make sure we don’t get too excited as well and focus on the job at hand.”

Rohit Sharma admitted Pune had played better cricket when these two sides met this season, “Like Mahela said we don’t have a great history against Pune, and they’ve been playing some good cricket throughout the tournament.” The skipper knows where they lacked as a team, “We were not good on those days. Tomorrow we have to make sure that we’re better and play good cricket and focus on what we need to do as a team.” He knows if you look at those things then the result will come itself. “You need to concentrate on the process, rather than thinking too far ahead” said Rohit.

The overall consistency has stood out for both sides. Mahela Jayawardene said, “We have been consistent throughout the tournament and the top two teams are in the final, so we have a lot of mutual respect. It’s all about guys going out and enjoying and playing a good game of cricket. Right now, it’s just about having a good game tomorrow.”

The coach was asked how they will approach the game tomorrow with the Hyderabad wicket usually on the slower side, “I think different venues have given different challenges. We will practically find it difficult to defend 180 or 190 at Wankhede. We have played here once against Sunrisers. We have seen some of the other matches, how they have panned out. So we just need to adapt to the conditions. We don’t have any pre-mind-set going. We’ll see how the wicket is.”

When asked about Krunal Pandya, the captain confirmed that he looked okay at the moment and Mitchell McClenaghan will be assessed at the ground tomorrow, “Toss is important but you need to play good cricket. At the end of the day you need to have a good game of cricket,” said Rohit Sharma. “We will try not to repeat our mistakes. We have to learn from our mistakes,” the captain concluded.

The coach and the skipper have experience to win crucial games, and tomorrow’s won’t be any different. It simply promises to be a cracker of a contest.