GT vs MI IPL 2023 Qualifier 2: Mumbai Indians peaking at the right time, says Cameron Green

Mumbai Indians (MI) all-rounder Cameron Green feels the five-time champions are peaking at the right time in the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) as they gear up for a high-octane Qualifier 2 against defending champions Gujarat Titans.

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Green’s comments came after MI outplayed Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) by 81 runs in the Eliminator at Chennai’s MA Chidambaram Stadium on Wednesday.

Green top-scored for Mumbai with a 23-ball 41 at Chepauk although Akash Madhwal later played a central role in the victory with a sensational haul of 5/5, bundling Lucknow out for a paltry 101 after they were set 183 to win.

The Western Australian cricketer, who had been bought by the franchise for a whopping Rs 17.5 crore in the player auction, added that the newcomers in the squad had been warned about MI being perennial slow starters, and that they always found a way to catch up in the later stages of the tournament.

“Obviously, all experience that he (Rohit) has got for India and in IPL, he kind of knows. I think MI never won the first game of IPL and he tries to mention that to us,” Green told Star Sports after the Eliminator.

“We obviously had a slow kind of start but you want to obviously start peaking at this time of the year, you don’t want to be playing good cricket and slowing down now but peaking at right time,” the giant Australian, who has scored 262 runs and taken six wickets,” he added.

Mumbai face a stiff challenge on Friday against the Titans, led by former MI all-rounder Hardik Pandya in Qualifier 2, given they will be facing the current title holders in their own backyard, i.e. the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Read | Everything you need to know GT vs MI IPL 2023 Qualifier 2

The winner of that contest then progresses to the final, also hosted in Ahmedabad, where they will face four-time champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK).

Green described GT as a “tough team” that has all its bases covered.

“They have been best side all tournament, may be a bit of slip up against CSK but they are the best side and they have everything covered — opening batters are flying and spin twins (Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmed) have been hard to get away. They are a tough team but we will go there with all optimism,” Green added.