Mumbai Indians all-rounder Krunal Pandya and captain Rohit Sharma displayed great sportsmanship on the field in Match 42 of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
In the sixth over of the first innings, Punjab Kings (PBKS) batsman Chris Gayle smacked the ball straight to his partner KL Rahul, through whom it ricocheted off. The left-arm spinner Krunal took advantage of the situation by hitting the stumps.
Although the on-field umpire seemed interested in the appeal, Krunal signalled him to withdraw his appeal and asked skipper Rohit not to take the matters upstairs.
Rahul appreciated Krunal and Rohit’s sportsman spirit as he instantly gave them a thumbs up.
Here’s the video:
https://twitter.com/CowCorner9/status/1442866753340510211
Fans too hailed Krunal and Rohit for upholding the spirit of the game by withdrawing their appeal.
https://twitter.com/Chefly_abhinav/status/1442860749777371146
Three cheers to Rohit Sharma and Krunal Pandya for showing Sportsmanship towards KL Rahul 😇🙌🏻👏🏻
They denied to the Umpires to go for a Run out appeal as he was hurt.🙇🏻♀️
Kl's happy 👍🏻 so is Rohit smiling 😊#PBKSvMI pic.twitter.com/PZQOJ3nd9c— Jemriti 💙 (@jemi_smriti_fan) September 28, 2021
Sportsmanship spirit from Krunal Pandya and Rohit Sharma.
— R A T N I S H (@LoyalSachinFan) September 28, 2021
https://twitter.com/prathinnnn/status/1442861027746480136
As far as the result of the match is concerned, MI beat PBKS by six wickets in a low scoring thriller. Put in to bat first, Punjab managed a below-par total of 135/6, which Mumbai surpassed in 19 overs, with Hardik Pandya scoring an unbeaten 40 off 30 balls while Saurabh Tiwary top-scored with a 37-ball 45.
Earlier, Jasprit Bumrah and Kieron Pollard got two wickets apiece for the defending champions, while Aiden Markram (42 off 29) turned out to be the lone warrior for Rahul & Co.
