'Batters just want to prove a point' - Trent Boult reveals secret behind first-over wickets

Trent Boult revealed the secret behind his success in his first overs in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He bagged the wicket of Yashasvi Jaiswal in his first over of the second innings of Mumbai Indians' (MI) clash against Rajasthan Royals (RR) on Thursday, May 1, at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.

In his second over, the New Zealand pacer got the better of Nitish Rana. His two wickets inside the powerplay pegged back RR considerably as they suffered a crushing 100-run defeat. Boult took the final wicket of Jofra Archer to finish with figures of 3/28 in 2.1 overs.

Speaking about his fruitful first overs, Boult opined that batters look to prove a point by trying to take the attack to him, and this ploy often leads to their downfall. The left-arm speedster said that he knew Yashasvi Jaiswal would try to come hard at him because he loves to hit boundaries. Boult also mentioned that a lot of work is being put in behind the scenes.

“Maybe they all want a piece of me and just really want to prove a point. I know Jaiswal wanted a piece, that's for sure. Got along with him incredibly well when I had my time at the Royals. Quality player loves to hit boundaries. Yeah, we did a lot of work behind the scenes on what we were thinking, and to take a few wickets up the top there and set up that power play and that chase nicely,” said Boult on Star Sports.

Boult has picked up 31 wickets in the first over after 99 innings in the IPL. He averages 17.45 and has an economy rate of 5.46.

MI climb to top of the table with comprehensive win in Jaipur

MI posted a mammoth 217/2 in the first innings after being invited to bat first by RR's stand-in captain Riyan Parag. Ryan Rickelton and Rohit Sharma scored half-centuries, while Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya made handy contributions.

In reply, RR were bowled out for just 117 in 16.1 overs. Apart from Boult, Karn Sharma also picked up three wickets. MI climbed to the top of the table with this resounding win. They have seven wins and four defeats from 11 matches.