Bravo came, danced and conquered

Emotions ran high in the Mumbai Indians8217; dressing room yesterday after their sixth straight IPL win, at Hyderabad.

Emotions ran high in the Mumbai Indians8217; dressing room yesterday after their sixth straight IPL win, at Hyderabad. They celebrated their collective effort on the field, but there was a hint of sadness as well. The game against Deccan Chargers on Sunday was the last IPL outing for Mumbai Indians8217; ultimate team man and extremely popular all-rounder Dwayne Bravo, who had a charted jet waiting at the airport that would make his journey to join the national team at home quicker.

The cost incurred by the franchise for the flight to London was worth it: Bravo8217;s 17 ball 30 and 3/24 saw him get the Man of the Match award in the victory that saw the Mumbai Indians jump into the top four. The man, who came in as a replacement for the injured Lasith Malinga, scored 178 runs in seven innings and picked up 11 wickets, and had a big role to play in his team8217;s comeback. Besides his on-field impact, Bravo8217;s charming presence in the dressing room are part of pleasant memories that the West Indian leaves behind.

As the game got over, skipper Sachin Tendulkar asked for a temporary halt to the celebrations as he gave a short farewell speech for the man who was busy packing his kit bag. Tendulkar spoke about Bravo8217;s positive energy that saw the team take a U-turn and how he wished the West Indian had stayed back. This certainly was a special moment for Bravo, considering the all-rounder had said a few days back that his most memorable moment of this IPL was walking in behind Tendulkar when he returned to lead the Mumbai Indians. It is also learnt that the Mumbai Indian skipper wished Bravo for his next cricketing assignment.

8220;Country comes first and later everything in life, so we wish that Bravo does well in the coming Test series against Australia,8221; is how Tendulkar concluded his speech.

With the formality of the occasion over, the Mumbai Indians brat pack crowded around Bravo. They took pictures, exchanged numbers, shared email addresses and spoke about the good time they had together. The one incident they all recalled was when, after a net session, Bravo started dancing in the team bus. He dragged his team members out of their seats and asked them to join him. But what triggered a laugh-riot in the team bus was when the West Indian invited the policeman in the bus to join him. What followed was the security personal dropping his guard and matching Barvo8217;s mean moves.

All-rounder Abhishek Nayar says the dressing room will be quieter after the full of beam Bravo has left.

8220;He is total timepass. He is a perfect entertainer and a great guy to hang around with. One can8217;t stop laughing when he is around,8221; says Nayar, who played his part in a match-winning 50-run partnership with Bravo on Sunday.

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Bravo missed the start of the IPL, and he will not be there at the end, but he has helped Mumbai Indian deal with the difficult middle overs of the IPL. After the bad start, they have hit the high notes, but the man who had made it possible has now left.