Evin Lewis and Rohit Sharma added 108 for the third wicket, with captain Rohit going on to score a 54-ball 92. It ensured that despite losing two wickets off the first two balls after being put in, Mumbai managed to set Bangalore a target of 214.

Bangalore didn’t really make a tilt at it, despite Virat Kohli walking out to open instead of Brendon McCullum, and scoring an unbeaten 62-ball 92. The next highest scorer in the side was Quinton de Kock with 19.

However, Daniel Vettori, the Bangalore head coach, refused to fault his batsmen. Instead, the blame was placed squarely on the bowling – an age-old problem for Bangalore – and their inability to keep opponents to small totals. The 213-6 conceded against Mumbai meant that Bangalore’s batsmen, for the second consecutive match, had to chase a total in excess of 200.

Rohit saved his biggest praise for Lewis. The Trinidadian’s association with Rohit ensured the sizeable momentum Bangalore gained with two early wickets amounted to nothing. The left-right combination also threw bowling plans.

“With Evin Lewis batting, anything can happen,” said Rohit. “He’s a great striker of the ball, and anything in his area he’s going to smash it. He did that, and allowed me to do it, which was crucial. We wanted a set batsman to bat as long as possible, and he set the perfect platform for me to do that this game.

“The pitch was a little on the softer side, shot-making wasn’t easy. But Lewis, the way he batted in the first six overs, it didn’t look like that.”