‘Rohit bhai knows what my strength is’: MI's unheralded hero Akash Madhwal

Mumbai Indians pacer Akash Madhwal (right) and skipper Rohit Sharma celebrates the dismissal of Lucknow Super Giants’s Ravi Bishnoi at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Wednesday. Pic/PTI

Akash Madhwal's fresh-faced enthusiasm is hard to miss, infectious almost. Few cricketers have displayed enjoyment on the field more vividly than the 29-year-old engineer from Roorkee, clearly having the time of his life.

Belatedly included in the squad last season, the one-time tennis ball exponent had to bide his time this year but in the small matter of seven matches, he has established himself as Rohit Sharma's go-to man, capable of picking up wickets with the new ball and a master at nailing the yorkers with pinpoint accuracy.

Madhwal lived out a dream at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Wednesday, in the biggest match of his fledgling career. The Uttarakhand captain equalled the best figures by an Indian in the IPL - five for five, only achieved by Anil Kumble in the 2009 edition in South Africa - to pull the rug from under Lucknow Super Giants' feet in the Eliminator and muscle Mumbai Indians to a Qualifier 2 showdown with Gujarat Titans.

‘Good attitude and skills'

"We knew what we had [in Madhwal]," Rohit said after the game. "Once Jofra [Archer] was gone, we knew we needed somebody to bowl at the backend and with him, having seen him enough, I was confident he [Madhwal] could get the job done for us. [He] has a lot of skills, a good attitude and a lot of character as well."

Madhwal mastered the yorker while playing tennis-ball cricket where, according to him, every other delivery is an invitation for disaster. "Actually, my strength is my yorker," he admitted, disarmingly.

"Rohit bhai knows what my strength is. Later on, I bowled at the nets and in practice matches with the new ball too, and he felt I could bowl with the new ball too. He used me exactly where the team needed me. In situations where he had confidence in my abilities, he gave me the ball and I proved myself. I'm very chilled and relaxed and I am having fun because I am following my passion. Rohit bhai keeps me calm and chill and backs me. Apart from that, I'm enjoying my cricket." And why not? It's not often that one returns dream figures of 3.3-0-5-5 in any format at any level.

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LSG's Naveen to the four

Before Madhwal, Lucknow's Afghan recruit Naveen-ul-Haq had had a fantastic evening with four wickets - Rohit, Cameron Green, Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma - but copped a fair amount of stick from the Chennai crowd, which went ‘Kohli Kohli' every time he ran in to bowl, a fallout of their showdown in Lucknow when his team met Royal Challengers Bangalore in a needle clash. "I enjoy it," Naveen said. "I like the crowd chanting his or any other player's name. It gives me the passion to play well for my team."