Joys, heartbreaks, exhibitions of talent, and a massive flood of Blue and Gold support drove Mumbai Indians’ latest Indian Premier League adventure to new heights.

The word BELIEVE, which was finely rooted as a sapling in the hearts and minds of the players, was constantly watered by the support of the Paltan, and it played a substantial role in some of the most significant highs that MI achieved this term. A fair share of pros and cons in our run-in at IPL 2023, but this edition was a litmus test of how our ‘never-say-die’ attitude never saw a drop.

We highlight five moments that stood out the most in the latest instalment of the T20 extravaganza.

Match 3: Delhi Capitals vs Mumbai Indians - PC special and the 10-ball collapse

To kick things off, we start with our first win of the season. Piyush Chawla, who returned to IPL action after a year out, made instant with the ball as he pulled off some old-school tricks - googly and wrong-un - to take three wickets for just 22 runs. His commitment would see him trouble batters throughout the tournament and pocket 22 scalps in 16 games.

PC’s effort in the fixture influenced one of the rare collapses in T20 cricket.

18.1 overs: 165/6

18.3 overs: 166/7

18.4 overs: 166/8

18.6 overs: 166/9

19.4 overs: 172/10

Five wickets in the last ten balls of Delhi innings. Isn’t this a perfect way to kickstart a fightback into the season after defeats in the opening games, Paltan?

Match 4: Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders - Arjun Tendulkar’s MI debut

An extraordinary cast, A special occasion and the result? A smile dipped in Blue and Gold across the faces of over 19000 young girls from 36 NGOs and 200 special children. 

However, the one moment that had a unique shine was the debut of a new Tendulkar at the spiritual ground of Mumbai cricketers, the Wankhede Stadium. Arjun Tendulkar, a left-arm bowling all-rounder, was handed his MI cap by skipper Rohit Sharma and told to bowl the opening over against KKR.

The young cricketer held his nerves to record figures of 0, 2, 1, 1lb, 0 and 1, and in the following match against SRH, bowled an excellent final over to seal the game. Every spectator of the match applauded his maturity on the pitch. And finally, in the senior Tendulkar's words, "a wicket came to the Tendulkar household".

Match 8: Mumbai Indians vs Rajasthan Royals - Mission Passed:- Chase 200 at Wankhede

April 30, 2023, remember the date. Why? It is the day Mumbai Indians overcame a long-standing wall in IPL - chasing 200 at the Wankhede Stadium.

The event began with Yashasvi Jaiswal smashing a confident hundred for Rajasthan Royals and helping them set a target of 215 to chase. Our run-chase, well, didn’t have the brightest of starts. But the entry of Cameron Green and Aapla Dada Surya flipped the table over, and the momentum shifted in our favour. The baton of command was then handed over to Tim David, who ran riot with a 14-ball 45 to power Mumbai to a successful record-breaking chase with three balls to spare.

This result was the foundation of something more spectacular: chasing 200-plus totals against Bangalore (200) and Hyderabad (201) at our home ground.

Match 14: Mumbai Indians vs Sunrisers Hyderabad - A Cam-manding display

Cam-eth the hour, Cam-eth, the man! A do-or-die encounter for Mumbai to qualify for their 10th IPL playoff, and who better than our record signing to lead us to victory? And that too at our turf?

The opening partnership - Vivrant Sharma and Mayank Agarwal - powered Sunrisers to 199. But given the grit in our batting order, this proved to be a challenge, with difficulty level easy.

How? Cameron Green came in at number three and took the SRH bowlers to the cleaners. Eight boundary fours and sixes in his 47-ball 100, including a boundary as the winning run to his maiden T20 hundred.

Eliminator: Lucknow Super Giants vs Mumbai Indians - Madh-ness in Chennai

Lastly, we are down to one of the top performers in the Class of 2023, Akash Madhwal.

The 29-year-old tennis-ball cricketer, who took 4/37 in the previous game, went up a notch as he registered a record-setting five wickets for just five runs in the Eliminator against LSG. Mind you! he bowled just 3.3 overs and managed to break through the floodgates of a struggling Lucknow batting order.

The first bowler to take a fifer in the IPL playoffs and record-holder for best bowling performance by an uncapped Indian bowler in IPL history, 29-year-old Madhwal has a bright future ahead of him, and we couldn’t be more excited!