NEW DELHI: Mumbai Indians continued their red-hot form in IPL 2025 with a commanding 100-run win over Rajasthan Royals at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on Thursday.
Central to MI’s sixth straight win were opener Ryan Rickelton’s authoritative 61 and Karn Sharma’s clinical bowling performance, which helped dismantle RR’s fragile batting lineup.
Sent to bat first, MI openers Rohit Sharma and Ryan Rickelton laid a powerful foundation. Rickelton, in particular, was relentless against the Rajasthan pacers, unleashing his full range of strokes.
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His 38-ball 61 was a display of fearless cricket, highlighted by a majestic flick off Fazalhaq Farooqi that soared over the ropes.
He was especially effective against the quicker bowlers, handling express pace with composure and punishing any width offered.
With the scoreboard ticking freely, MI posted 58/0 in the powerplay, and Rickelton reached his half-century in style with a towering six off a half-tracker from Kartikeya.
While Rickelton and Rohit stitched a 116-run stand, it was the bowling unit that backed up the batters superbly — particularly veteran leg-spinner Karn Sharma, who turned the game firmly in MI’s favour after coming in as an impact substitute during the chase.
With Royals reeling from the early loss of teenager Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Yashasvi Jaiswal, Karn struck thrice, removing Dhruv Jurel, Maheesh Theekshana and Kumar Kartikeya to notch up a figure of 3/23 with an economy of 5.80.
His disciplined lines and clever variations choked the middle order and exposing RR’s lack of depth.
With Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah and Deepak Chahar providing pace and bounce up front, Karn’s control in the middle overs ensured that RR never recovered.
Rajasthan folded for just 117 in 16.1 overs, unable to cope with the scoreboard pressure or MI’s all-round execution.
With this comprehensive win, Mumbai Indians not only ended Rajasthan’s playoff chances but also sent a strong message to the rest of the league: they’re peaking at the perfect time.
