Owing to its short boundaries and excellent batting conditions, bowling at the Wankhede Stadium can be a daunting task and takes expertise on the part of the bowlers to excel in those conditions. Despite these challenges, T20 Mumbai Season 2 saw a host of quality spells throughout the season from spinners as well as seamers.

And while there were plenty to choose from, the following five spells were the best of the lot:  

• Dhrumil Matkar – 5/32

Defending 217 in the semi-final, the SoBo SuperSonics were in the hunt for early wickets and got off to the perfect start as spinner Dhrumil Matkar, bowling the second over, dismissed the dangerous Arjun Tendulkar before getting rid of Bhavin Thakkar for a duck while giving away just a solitary run.

He bowled another tidy over in the powerplay before returning in the 12^th to pick two more wickets, dismissing Shams Mulani and Yogesh Pawar to derail the Tigers’ chase. He picked up another wicket in his final over to complete his and the league’s first fifer of the season and ensured that the SuperSonics advance to the final.

• Karsh Kothari – 4/19

After the NaMo Bandra Blasters’ bowlers got their team off to a tidy start against the dangerous batting lineup of the Shivaji Park Lions, captain Shreyas Iyer handed the ball to Karsh Kothari and the spinner wreaked havoc. With the very first ball of his spell, Kothari dismissed Swapnil Pradhan and on the penultimate delivery of that over, he got rid of opposition captain Siddhesh Lad with a peach of a ball.

In walked the explosive Rudra Dhanday and he too met the same fate and was dismissed on the very first delivery as Kothari finished his first over with three wickets. The spinner gave away just 10 runs in his subsequent two overs and picked up his fourth wicket of the night in his final over, getting rid of set batsman Hardik Tamore with the last ball of his spell.

• Royston Dias – 4/26

Having won just one of their first three fixtures, defending champions Triumph Knights Mumbai North East were hence, in need of a victory against the Shivaji Park Lions. They got off to a dream start as pacer Royston Dias got them a breakthrough with just the third delivery of the match, dismissing opener Rudra Dhanday with a brilliant ball.

Dias was economical on the night, giving away just 17 in his first three overs, before returning to bowl the final over where he picked three more wickets, which included a wicket on each of the first two deliveries. He dismissed Vijay Gohil with a catch off his own bowling and finished with figures of 4-26 on the night and was also adjudged the man-of-the-match for his performance.

• Prashant Solanki – 4/31

With 85 on the scoreboard for the loss of one wicket in 11 overs, the ARCS Andheri looked poised to post a big total for the Eagle Thane Strikers to chase. However, their spinner Prashant Solanki had other ideas. He bowled a tidy first over giving away eight runs but was smashed for 10 runs on the first two deliveries of his second, as opposition captain Kevin Almeida decided to take the spinner on.

However, Solanki had the perfect response as he dismissed the skipper and gave away just one run in the subsequent three balls. In his next over, the spinner picked up his second scalp, getting rid of the other set batsman, Iqbal Abdulla as well, curbing the momentum of the ARCS’ inning. His final over, the 18^th of the inning, yielded two big wickets, as Solanki dismissed both Azhar Ansari and Shubham Ranjane and reduced the ARCS to 136-6 after being 103-1.

• Mohit Avasthi – 3/17 

Winless in their first two games and defending 162 in the third, the Knights needed their bowlers to step up against the in-form Eagle Thane Strikers’ batting lineup and pacer Mohit Awasthi answered his team’s call with a brilliant spell of pace bowling.

He bowled two overs in the powerplay, maintaining an impeccable length and a tight line, giving away just eight runs and building the pressure on the Strikers’ batting order. Avasthi returned in the 14^th and bowled another brilliant over, giving away just four runs and picking up the wicket of Aishwary Surve which left the Strikers reeling at 65-6. The speedster also bowled the penultimate over, picking up two more wickets while giving away only six runs to finish with figures of 3/17 and ensure victory for his side.