Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], April 1 : Mumbai Indians record-shattering IPL debutant Ashwani Kumar revealed the words of encouragement he received from skipper Hardik Pandya and his favourite scalp out of the four top stars he bagged against defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025.
Mumbai Indians (MI) continued their policy of unearthing new talent and presented the 23-year-old left-arm seamer to the world. On his debut, Ashwani became the first Indian to take a four-wicket haul on an IPL debut.
Before enchanting the spectators with his scorching spell, Ashwani, who hails from Punjab, received a simple message from Hardik to bowl fearlessly and enjoy.
"It is a really good feeling. I didn't expect things to play out like this. Hardik bhai told me you are from Punjab, and the people there are not scared of anything. You have to scare the opposition and enjoy," he said in a video posted by the IPL.
He sent shivers down KKR's spine when he took his position and began charging down at the batters. The 23-year-old made his IPL debut a day to remember and returned with figures of 4/24.
Ashwani's wicket pool included established stars featuring skipper Ajinkya Rahane, Rinku Singh, Manish Pandey and hard-hitting Andre Russell.
"My favourite wicket was Andre Russell because he is a big player," Ashwani said when asked about his favourite wicket.
Ashwani didn't waste time and struck on his first ball in the IPL. Rahane tried to go after the boundary but only found Tilak Varma's hands. Initially, Tilak gobbled up the chance as the ball fumbled out of his hands, but he held his composure to complete the catch on the second occasion.
"When the ball fumbled I just hope he somehow gets hold of it. My strength is a bouncer and I can bowl a yorker as well," he said.
Ashwani's sizzling spell restricted Kolkata to 116 which Mumbai effortlessly chased down to open its win account with an 8-wicket triumph.