Delhi Daredevils suffered a jolt to its hopes of making the play-offs, capitulating to a 146-run defeat Mumbai Indians at the Ferozeshah Kotla on Saturday.
Both architects of Daredevils’s stupendous chase in the previous game — Sanju Samson and Rishabh Pant — failed to open their accounts. Samson was caught at deep-midwicket off the very first delivery of the innings from Mitchell McClenaghan while Pant top-edged Jasprit Bhumrah with the first shot he attempted.
Chasing 213 for victory — which would have bettered its highest successful chase of 209 two days ago — Daredevils packed up for 66 in just 13.4 overs.
Successful chases of stiff targets of late by the Daredevils’ young batsmen perhaps gave Zaheer Khan, returning after missing the last two games with a hamstring strain, enough confidence to put MI in.
Lendl Simmons, who was replacing Jos Buttler, got the visitors off to a superb start with Parthiv Patel. While Zaheer got some respect early on, the other bowlers did not get off lightly as the openers put on 79 runs. Simmons smashed four sixes and five fours in his 66 off 43 balls, becoming the second fastest to 1,000 IPL runs in the process.
Pat Cummins was welcomed by Parthiv who smashed him for four fours in his first over. Cummins would go wicketless for 59, 23 of which came in the final over that saw Hardik Pandya hit him for two sixes and a four.
After Parthiv fell, stumped by Rishabh Pant trying to heave a slower one from Amit Mishra, Keiron Pollard vindicated the decision to promote him up the order with a 35-ball 63 that was all brute power; he smashed the ball into the second and third tiers repeatedly.
It was harsh lesson for the young Delhi side that seems destined to miss the knock-outs yet again.
