Mumbai Indians' incredible scouting staff has produced another riveting talent - 23-year-old Ashwani Kumar. The left-arm pacer enjoyed a dream IPL debut, picking up 4/24 in a Player of the Match-worthy performance against Kolkata Knight Riders at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium on Monday.

What makes this performance even sweeter are the batters he dismissed - Ajinkya Rahane, Rinku Singh, Manish Pandey and Andre Russell - four of the biggest batting stars KKR has to offer. Deepak Chahar, with 2/19, and Trent Boult's 1/23 supported Ashwani well, but the youngster emerged as the star of the show as MI picked up their first win of IPL 2025 by beating KKR by eight wickets.

After the match, Ashwani won the MI badge from captain Hardik Pandya, who had shown faith in the pacer. If it was Vignesh Puthur in the first game, Ashwani was the showstopper against KKR. Coming from a humble background, Ashwini's struggles and resilience have been documented from a humble background. Expressing his gratitude towards his captain, whose message went a long way in bringing the best out of the rookie pacer, Kumar was in for a surprise inside the Mumbai Indians dressing room.

"Ashwini showed us what playing for the MI badge means.

Congratulations! I think before the huddle, we spoke about intensity, ruthlessness and what this MI badge means. He showed us exactly that, and we're very proud of you. Please continue," Hardik said while patting Ashwani on his chest.

Ashwani then quickly repaid the favour, vowing to give it his all in the coming matches. "First of all, I am very grateful that I got an opportunity to play among such great players. And I will try, that in the remaining games, I give my 100 percent and make the team win," he said, leading to a round of applause from his teammates."

Ryan Rickelton rewarded too

If Ashwani made waves for MI with the ball, with the bat, it was Ryan Rickelton. The South African batter opened the innings with Rohit Sharma, and although the Indian star was dismissed for 13 - his poor run of scores continuing - Rickelton remained unbeaten on 62 off 41 balls with 4 fours and 5 sixes, taking his team over the line. Like Ashwani, Rickelton too, was awarded a badge from captain Suryakumar Yadav.

"Everyone teed up like batting at the Wankhede is very easy. It's not. Rahul saw me dream in Cape Town, but honestly, it's great to contribute to the team.

Very chuffed, obviously, to get a score on the board and seek two points for MI. So, like we say, we move forward and look ahead to the rest," he said.