IPL 2023: Mumbai Indians' Akash Madhwal happy to grab his chance, says he waited for this moment since 2018

Engineer-turned-cricketer Akash Madhwal hogged all limelight for his match-winning spell of 5 for five against Lucknow Super Giants on Wednesday night in Chepauk. The right-arm seamer accounted for LSG's best batters this season, including Ayush Badoni and Nicholas Pooran of successive balls and helped Mumbai win by 81 runs. 

Following his spell that also saw him entering record books for becoming the first bowler to pick nine wickets in two straight games in IPL, Akash revealed what this moment meant to him and how he feels about it.

Till the age of 23, Akash played with the tennis ball, and upon getting a chance to feature in the IPL, he rocked the season with his impactful bowling with the new and the old ball. While he conceded above nine per above, Madhwal has picked 13 wickets from seven games. 

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Against Lucknow on Wednesday night in Chennai, in the knockout game, Madhwal impressed one and all with this tight line and a five-for, which will be talked about for some time. Elaborating on how he felt after achieving this milestone, Madhwal while speaking to the media after the game, said,

“The wicket of Nicholas Pooran was most pleasing for me. It was planned that when a left-hander comes to bat, I’ll go round the wicket,” he said after the match.

“I have been practising a lot and waiting for my opportunity. I have done engineering, cricket is my passion, and I have been waiting for this since 2018. When we practice in the nets, the management gives us the target and we try to execute our best. Hoping to do well in the coming games and want to end up as champions,” the right-arm seamer added.

Learning from the masters

In the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, the overseas pair of Jofra Archer and Jason Behrendorff were supposed to lead the charge; however, untimely injuries and poor form resulted in both playing limited games. Although they failed to leave an impact considering the bigger picture, they did teach Madhwal a few tricks that the Indian seamer executed well during his spells.

Explaining what he picked from them, Akash said,

“When I was with Jofra (Archer), both of us were not part of the team and was bowling Yorkers with him in tandem. From Jason Behrendorff, I’m learning the knuckleball. From (Chris) Jordan, I’m learning the ball that seams up after pitching,” he added.

Meanwhile, Mumbai would require him to repeat his heroics against Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 2 on Friday in Ahmedabad.

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