Highlights:
- Mumbai Indians moves up to fifth place, while Punjab Kings drop to sixth.
- MI finally got it’s first win after three consecutive defeats in the second leg of IPL 2021.
- Superb innings from Saurabh Tiwary, Hardik and Pollard helped MI successfully chase down the target.
Mumbai Indians (MI) won their Indian Premier League (IPL) match against Punjab Kings (PBKS) by six wickets on Tuesday at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.
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MI knocked down the target of 136 in 19 overs, losing only four wickets. Hardik Pandya shined with the bat, smashing an unbeaten 40* to lead his team to victory. Saurabh Tiwary and Kieron Pollard also contributed significant innings for the Mumbai Indians, scoring 45 and 15* respectively (MI). Pollard also took two wickets for the reigning champions, who limited Punjab Kings (PBKS) to 135.
Ravi Bishnoi took two wickets for Punjab, while Nathan Ellis and Mohammad Shami both returned one.
Chasing a target of 136, Mumbai got off to a bad start as Ravi Bishnoi sent Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav back to the pavilion in two consecutive deliveries in the fourth over of the innings. Mumbai Indian’s skipper was dismissed after scoring eight runs in 10 balls, while Yadav was clean bowled for a first-ball duck.
Saurabh Tiwary joined Quinton de Kock on the pitch soon after, helping to calm the MI’s ship in the middle overs. The MI score was 30/2 at the completion of the first powerplay.
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Mohammad Shami struck in the 10th over to dismiss MI opener de Kock. Shami clean bowled the South African batsman for 27 off 29 balls. The reigning champs’ score was 62/3 at the halfway mark of the innings.
Hardik Panday then joined Saurabh Tiwary on the pitch, perfectly combining caution with beautiful strokeplay. Saurabh Tiwary edged to KL Rahul off the bowling of Nathan Ellis in the 16th over. Tiwary stepped back after collecting a crucial 45 runs from 37 balls.
Hardik Pandya and Kieron Pollard scored 11 runs in the 17th over to relieve some of Mumbai’s burden. MI needed 29 runs off 18 balls at that point. Pollard then hit a six and a four as the MI pair gathered 13 runs against Arshdeep Singh in the 18th over.
Shami gave 17 runs in the last over of the match as Pandya pounded six and two fours to secure the victory in the MI’s favour.
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Previously, Mumbai Indians (MI) bowlers held Punjab Kings (PBKS) to 135/6. Mumbai’s two wickets came from Kieron Pollard and Jasprit Bumrah, while Krunal Pandya and Rahul Chahar each took one. Aiden Markram and Deepak Hooda batted 42 and 28 runs for Punjab Kings, respectively.
When they were sent in to bat first, PBKS got off to a decent start, scoring 38 runs in the opening six overs with one wicket lost. Mandeep Singh was sent back to the pavilion after Krunal Pandya trapped him in front of the wickets for lbw in the final over of the powerplay. After scoring 15 runs on 14 balls, PBKS’s opener walked back.
Kieron Pollard wreaked havoc for Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the next over, removing first compatriot Chris Gayle on one run and then KL Rahul in the same spell. After scoring 21 runs on 22 balls, PBKS captain walked back.
In the following over, Jasprit Bumrah dismissed Nicholas Pooran, making things worse for Punjab. Aiden Markram was soon joined on the pitch by Deepak Hooda, and the two attempted to stabilize the red team’s ship. Punjab’s score at the halfway mark of the innings was 62/4. Punjab surpassed the 100-run mark in the 15th over of the game, thanks to a combination of caution and beautiful strokeplay from the duo.
In the 15th over from Trent Boult, Markram and Hooda scored 15 runs. Rahul Chahar clean bowled dangerous-looking Markram for 42 off 29 balls in the next over.
Hooda (28) was out in the last over of the innings by Bumrah. The PBKS score after the final over was 135/6.
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