Watch: Daniel Sams bowls incredible last over, defends 8 off 6 balls to script epic heist for Mumbai Indians
Left-arm pacer Daniel Sams bowled one of the best last overs of a match as the Mumbai Indians pacer defended 9 runs off the final over to win a thriller of an IPL match for his side.
Left-arm pacer Daniel Sams bowled one of the best last overs of a match as the Mumbai Indians pacer defended 8 runs off the final over to win a thriller of an IPL match for his side. With GT needing nine to win off six balls with David Miller and Rahul Tewatia, two of the finest finishers, Sams conceded just three runs off the over, which saw the run out of the dangerous Tewatia to help MI win their second match of the IPL 2022 season. GT finished on 172/8, five short of MI's total of 177/6. (Also Read: Mumbai eke out a five-run win)
Just over a month ago, Sams had bowled a forgettable over for MI, giving away 35 in an over against Pat Cummins of Kolkata Knight Riders, but Friday at the Brabourne Stadium, redemption was his. Gujarat were 160/4 when Sams was given the ball to bowl the final over. The first ball resulted in a single as Miller hit the ball in the deep for a single. Second ball of the over, a ball bowled at 106 kph, was a dot ball. Tewatia hit at long on but was run out while returning for a second run thanks to a powerful throw from the deep by Tilak Verma. The fourth was another slower delivery, as Rashid Khan could only muster a single even as Sams ran back to pull off a catch.
The equation boiled down to 6 off the final two balls and against all odds, Sams bowls another dot ball, full, wide and slow as Miller fails to connect and put bat to ball. With 6 needed off 1 ball, Sams bowled a full toss, which Miller missed to read again as the MI camp erupted into wild celebrations, with Rohit Sharma and Sams failing to control their emotions.
"Awesome we got over the line, it went back and forward. Must have been great for the fans to watch. 9 off 6 made me feel I have nothing to lose and the odds are in the batter's favour. I got a few wide balls in the tramline and managed to execute it well. My intent was to stick to the best balls I could bowl, the slower one is the ball I go back to and it paid off. We did not have the start we wanted, after the 8 losses, we looked it as a mini-IPL with 6 games. We are trying to show what we can do and were able to pull it off which helps our confidence," Sams said after the match to host broadcaster Star.
Rohit Sharma hailed Sams for his effort. "He (Sams) was under the pump in a couple of games, but I have seen him for Australia and in the BBL, he has a lot of skill. It was not easy to defend 9 runs," said the MI captain.