Mumbai Indians joined Chennai Super Kings as the only franchise to have won the IPL and the Champions League T20 in the same year as they beat Rajasthan Royals in the final.
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When the Twenty20 format gained full momentum in India, the IPL was considered the pinnacle of all leagues in the world. In addition to the IPL, there was a global event bringing the best from England, New Zealand, West Indies, South Africa, Australia and Sri Lanka called the Champions League T20. When the leagues started, MS Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings were the number one side in the world. They had won the IPL in 2010 and they followed it up in grand style by winning the Champions League T20 in that same year in South Africa.
When the IPL and Champions League T20 began, Mumbai Indians were a side that had star power but they did not produce the results. Poor shows in IPL 2008 and 2009 had diminished the franchise value. However, they rose from the ashes and reached the final of IPL 2010 where they lost to Chennai Super Kings. In IPL 2011, Mumbai Indians finished third and reached the Champions League T20 for the first time.
There was drama in that edition. Many of Mumbai Indians’ players were injured and that meant they were struggling to field a side of 11 players. The CLT20 made an exception and stated that MI could play five foreigners instead of the stated number of four. This would prove to be decisive in the end.
Mumbai Indians managed to win the Champions League T20 2011 title under the captaincy of Harbhajan Singh. They toppled Chennai Super Kings by three wickets and got over the line by one wicket against Trinidad and Tobago in the league stages. After a loss to New South Wales, MI managed to reach the semi-final. After beating Somerset by 10 runs, they defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore by 31 runs to win the title.
When Rohit Sharma came into the Mumbai Indians team, the results started to go their way. MI were now establishing themselves as the pillar of dominance in Twenty20 cricket. In IPL 2013, they managed to win the title for the first time by beating Chennai Super Kings in Kolkata. This was the first IPL title in 2013 and it was the perfect send-off for Sachin Tendulkar. Things would get only better in the next couple of months, with Mumbai Indians looking to double their tally of Champions League T20 titles.
The first match of the tournament saw Mumbai Indians being upstaged by Rajasthan Royals by seven wickets in Jaipur. The Royals, who had finished in the third spot in 2013, put on a clinical display of batting and bowling. The game against Otago Volts was abandoned due to a thunderstorm in Ahmedabad. But, they got their campaign back on track with a big win against Highveld Lions and the Perth Scorchers.
The knockout stages saw three out of the four sides coming from India. In the first match, Rajasthan Royals eliminated Chennai Super Kings. Mumbai Indians managed to knock out Trinidad and Tobago thanks to a brilliant 59 from Dwayne Smith. Thus, it was a repeat of the opening match as Rajasthan Royals looked to continue their fairytale run in the competition.
In the final at the Arun Jaitley stadium in New Delhi, Rajasthan Royals chose to bowl on a flat deck. Smith, Rohit Sharma and Glenn Maxwell all batted aggressively as Mumbai Indians notched up a huge score of 202/6. Tendulkar, playing in his last match, was dismissed for 15 by Shane Watson.
Chasing 203, Rajasthan Royals lost Kusal Perera cheaply but Ajinkya Rahane and Sanju Samson batted brilliantly. The duo put on a partnership of 109, with both Rahane and Samson batting brilliantly. Both players notched up their fifties and Rajasthan Royals looked to be in the game. However, Samson was dismissed for 60 by Pragyan Ojha to keep the game wide open
Mumbai Indians got another massive breakthrough when Shane Watson fell for 8 by Harbhajan Singh. In the 17th over, Harbhajan ensured that Mumbai Indians came close to the title as he sent back Rahane, Kevon Cooper and Stuart Binny in one over. Rahul Dravid, coming to bat at No.8, was bowled by Nathan Coulter-Nile in his final innings. Mumbai Indians won the match by 33 runs and created history.
They became the first nation to win the Champions League T20 twice. Mumbai Indians also joined Chennai Super Kings in winning the IPL and CLT20 title in the same year. The win in 2013 opened the doors of domination for Mumbai Indians. They went on to win four more IPL titles, taking their tally to five. Chennai Super Kings, on the other hand, won one more Champions League T20 title to level with Mumbai Indians. But, they had won three IPL titles.
It was a sad end to Tendulkar and Dravid’s careers, but the match symbolised the rising dominance of Mumbai Indians.
