We all remember that the last time MI took to the field, it was a sensational clash against CSK, where the team chased down 138 runs in the last 62 balls to win the game. Kieron Pollard was in punishing mood that day, and took the team home in the last ball with his 87* (34).

Pollard’s fellow MI finisher and big hitter, Hardik Pandya, who shares the honour of having the joint fastest fifty with Polly’s knock in this game, shared something after the match that has got us all thinking.

Hardik said, “He hits sixes for breakfast but if he takes a wicket or he bowls well, for him, you know when you give candy to a baby, it's like that. He is livid with himself when he gives [away] runs because, I don't know, he takes his bowling to the heart. I think batting he does from here (points to the head), bowling happens from here (points to the heart) I feel.”

If this is true, we cannot deny that Pollard must have felt like a child at a candy stall when he savoured two precious wickets during the CSK innings.

CSK was having a solid run, with Faf du Plessis and Moeen Ali in sublime form. The two were involved in a 108-run partnership before Bumrah dismissed the latter. The dangerous Suresh Raina joined Faf, and it looked like he was ready to get going in no time.

However, captain Rohit Sharma turned to Pollard with the ball instead of going for his regulars. And boy, he delivered! Four deliveries through the over, Polly had conceded only four singles, as opposed to some expensive overs that the others were having.

On the fifth ball, he bowled a slower delivery. Du Plessis went for a scoop but miscued it. And with the ball lacking pace, it didn’t have enough to make it past the fielder, Jasprit Bumrah, who lapped up the catch. Pollard took a magnificent bow to celebrate the wicket.

Next delivery, another magic slow ball, didn’t bode well for danger man Suresh Raina, who holed out to the fielder at deep square leg. And this time, the celebration was Imran Tahir-like, taking off into a celebratory run!

The importance of these wickets can be seen in the bigger picture. CSK went on to post 218/4, a total that was never chased down by MI before. And even with Pollard’s blitzkrieg in the MI innings, the team managed to cross the line in the very last ball of the game, running a couple of runs. These two wickets, in hindsight, were game changers, allowing MI to win the game.

At this point, du Plessis was sailing at 50* at almost 200 strike rate. Raina had just walked in, but had all the chances of being as destructive as de Plessis. These two consecutive strikes from Pollard gave MI the turnaround to win the game.

If we roll back time, at multiple instances last year too, Pollard has come to bowl in the one or two overs in the middle to put a cap on the runs or take a crucial wicket or two. He has, more often than not, been that bowler who brings in important breakthroughs when nothing else seems to work out for the team.

This last game against CSK screams at us to really sit up and take note of Pollard - the Bowler. He is worth more than his finishing skills, his all round abilities are like none other, and he is only evolving by the day.

It is time we appreciate the bowler in Pollard as much as we appreciate the batter or finisher in him. Like Krunal Pandya said after the match, “he is a G.O.A.T.” And yes, we must give him the due credit for the same.