Mumbai Indians mauled Punjab team, to climb,to the fourth spot in the points table and kept their semi - final hopes alive. Mumbai Indians, who suffered a humiliating defeat in their previous encounter between both the teams had a reversal of script this time around, while set to chase a similar target of one hundred and twenty.
Punjab batsmen constructed an awful array of strokes, which led them to great collapse and failed to capitalise in a belligerent start provided by Sohal, who hit some massive sixes, but was later run –out by Mumbai Indians captain Sachin Tendulkar.
Rest of batsmen got out due to some senseless shot selection and also aided by off – spin strategy employed by Sachin Tendulkar against Punjab , who had as many as six left hander’s including Pombersbatch in place of injured Mahela Jayawardene, who sustained a hamstring injury in his previous stint against Deccan Chargers.
Clearly absence of calm presence of Mahela Jayawardene was quite palpable, as they never looked grounded and in the end only could manage a meagre total of one hundred and nineteen runs.
Malinga was not as effective as his previous outing, but Mumbai Indians stamped their authority with their spinners namely Harbhajan Singh and J P Duminy.
Sanath Jayasuriya and his new partner Dwayne Bravo went in the middle to kick start the Mumbai chase but lost Sanath due to some good bowling by Brett Lee and Irfan Pathan, but Dwayne Bravo held the innings in the one end with some lusty hits.
Piyush Chawla was introduced well within the power play and it paid immediate returns, as he accounted for Ajinkya Rahane, who was top scorer for Mumbai Indians in their facile win over Bangalore Royal Challenegers in the last match.
Mean time Dwayne Bravo swallowed any pressure which they had in their cortex, by clouting a Sreesanth over for a merciless twenty runs, which turned the tide in their favour.
Tendulkar never looked settled early on, but he managed to hang on, even after surviving few close inside edges and thick edges and once he got into his grove; it was disaster signs for Punjab kings XI, as the pair showed a great artifice in tackling spinners with ease, in the pitch which offered some assistant to spin breed.
Dwayne Bravo and Tendulkar unbeaten stand of eighty two sealed the match for Mubai Indians well within seventeenth over to turn the match into a one sided affair, but Mumbai Indians won’t have any complaints nor their climbing run – rate
0 comments:
Post a Comment