Romario Shepherd announced his arrival in IPL 2024 with a spectacular performance against the Delhi Capitals (DC) on Sunday, April 7. Playing for the Mumbai Indians (MI), Shepherd smashed 39 runs off just 10 balls with the aid of three fours and four sixes. His strike rate of 390 helped him win the Electric Striker of the Match award. Notably, Shepherd scored 32 runs in the last six balls of the innings bowled by express pacer Anrich Nortje.
Later in the second innings, he took David Warner’s big wicket to give the Mumbai Indians an upper hand in the contest.
Mumbai Indians eventually won the match against Delhi Capitals by 29 runs. Shepherd became the first player to win a Man of the Match award for MI in IPL 2024.
Before Shepherd further impresses the fans with his all-round brilliance, here’s a look at the three records of former MI all-rounder Kieron Pollard that he can break in the coming days.
#1 Romario Shepherd can break Kieron Pollard’s record for most sixes by an overseas player for Mumbai Indians
Kieron Pollard was one of the main overseas players for Mumbai Indians for a decade in the IPL. The hard-hitting all-rounder made a name for himself with his big shots, incredible fielding, and wicket- taking abilities.
Romario Shepherd can smack big shots just like Pollard. Also, he bowls right-arm pace. In the last match against Delhi Capitals, Shepherd showed that he can whack maximums at will. Pollard currently holds the record for the most sixes by a foreign player for Mumbai Indians in IPL history. He hit 222 sixes in 189 matches.
If Shepherd has a lengthy IPL stint with MI like Pollard, then he can end up breaking the latter’s record.
#2 Highest strike rate in an innings by an overseas player for Mumbai Indians in IPL
Romario Shepherd batted at an incredible strike rate of 390 in the last match against Delhi Capitals. However, he faced only 10 balls in the innings.
Among batters who faced at least 18 balls in an inning, Pollard has the best strike rate for an overseas player, batting for Mumbai Indians.
Back in 2019, Pollard scored 83 runs off just 31 balls at a strike rate of 267.74 against the Punjab Kings. Shepherd has the potential to break the record in the upcoming IPL 2024 games.
#3 Most runs by an overseas player for Mumbai Indians in IPL
Romario Shepherd is 29 years old right now. If he plays IPL for the next decade, he can break Kieron Pollard’s record for the most runs by an overseas player for Mumbai Indians in IPL history.
Pollard aggregated 3,412 runs in 171 innings for the Mumbai-based IPL franchise. He made his debut in 2010 and retired after the 2022 season. Assuming Shepherd gets a promotion in the batting order once he starts scoring consistently, the Guyanese star can break Pollard’s record one day.
It will be interesting to see if Shepherd can continue in the same vein in IPL 2024.