'Go With Clear Mind, No Holding Back': MI Hero Romario Shepherd After Win vs DC

A clear mind and a no holds barred approach at death overs hold key for Mumbai Indians' Romario Shepherd, who powered the five-time IPL champions to a 29-run win over Delhi Capitals in their IPL match in Mumbai on Sunday. The burly Guyanese all-rounder turned on the beast mode to hammer four sixes and two fours in the final over off South African pacer Anrich Nortje to collect 32 runs, finishing with an unbeaten 39 off just 10 balls. Courtesy Shepherd's blitz, Mumbai notched up their highest score at the Wankhede Stadium and also went on to record their first win of this IPL season.

“Everyone wants to bat a bit and before they start hitting, get used to the condition a bit. But whenever you're in the 17th over, you just go with a clear mind because there is no holding back,” Shepherd told the media here after the match.

Shepherd said batting with single-mindedness can bring success.

“Whenever you're in that kind of role you're even more dangerous, having to just hit the ball because when you ‘see-ball hit-ball', it's a more clear mindset than having to be tentative and looking for ones and twos,” he said.

“You play a bit tentative there and may be mis-capitalise on some delivery that you would normally hit.

“But when you're in the back end and there's only 18 balls, you will only face about seven, eight or nine out of those balls. You have to maximise and hit it as well as you can,” he added.

The Caribbean player said such an approach could also misfire but that is the nature of the role of being a finisher.

“Especially in the finishing role, there's a lot of pressure on us because everyone expects us to just go in there and blast sixes. Some days it will come off, some days it won't. Like today it came off, on the next