We’ve dealt with a few heartbreaks, a few bad nights, some flashes of brilliance from the opposition. But tonight is the hardest to take 😞. We really thought we had the game in the bag after the first innings. 243, on 99 nights out of 100, should be enough. Alas, this was that one. 💔

RYANO, RYANO, RYANO!!! 💪

Just epic batting. Sheer carnage. Brutal assault. One for the Blue and Gold treasury. Ryan Rickelton, coming into the XI at the very last second owing to an injury to Quinton de Kock, turned up the heat immediately. And how!

123 runs | 55 balls | 10 fours | 8 sixes. Record books were tumbling. Much like how the ball was being slaughtered to all parts of the Wankhede.

Highest individual scores for Mumbai Indians:
123* - Ryan Rickelton vs SRH, Wankhede, 2026
114* - Sanath Jayasuriya vs CSK, Wankhede, 2008
112* - Quinton de Kock vs PBKS, Wankhede, 2026
109* - Rohit Sharma vs KKR, Kolkata, 2012
105* - Rohit Sharma vs CSK, Wankhede, 2024

Fastest centuries for Mumbai Indians (balls taken):
44 - Ryan Rickelton vs SRH, Wankhede, 2026
45 - Sanath Jayasuriya vs CSK, Wankhede, 2008
45 - Tilak Varma vs GT, Ahmedabad, 2026
47 - Cameron Green vs SRH, Wankhede, 2023
49 - Suryakumar vs GT, Wankhede, 2023

Welcome, welcome, Will! 

The tone for MI’s innings, however, was set by a returning Will Jacks. Opening the innings, he was the aggressor in the powerplay, smashing a 22-ball 46 as Mumbai Indians raced to 78/0 in the first six overs. 👊

The HP cameo

When he hits them, they stay hit. There really aren’t many cleaner ball-bashers in cricket than Hardik Pandya, and he turned out that very mode tonight, smoking two fours, two sixes in his 15-ball 31 to ensure a solid finish 👏. The target: 244.

Travishek just too good

Our bowlers tried. They gave it their all. But with the ball getting wet because of the dew and some half-chances not being taken in the field, Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma were hard to stop, racing to 129/0 in the ninth over. But that’s when we clawed back..

6 balls | 4 runs | 3 wickets 🔥

Allah Ghazanfar struck twice in two balls, sending Abhishek and Ishan Kishan back, and Pandya followed it up with Head’s dismissal in the next over. Suddenly, from 129/0, SRH were 133/3. And MI were right in the contest. But Heinrich Klaasen, Nitish Reddy and Salil Arora  didn’t allow a resurgence, carrying Hyderabad home.

With four points now in eight games, our backs are to the wall. We have six games left and need to win everything to keep our fate in our hands. We’ve been here in the past. We’ve been on winning rolls. It’s time to switch on the B.E.L.I.E.V.E mode! ✊