Mumbai Indians’s top order ruled and Sunrisers Hyderabad’s reeled when it mattered in their face-off at the Rajiv Gandhi International stadium for a top four place in the league on Sunday night. The visitors took their time but surely and steadily eclipsed the home side’s total of 113 with 37 balls to spare.
By handing out a humiliating nine-wicket defeat, Mumbai made it to the second place of the showpiece event’s pecking order. Firmly ensconced in the middle during the endeavour, until the threshold of victory, were openers Lendl Simmons (48, 44b, 4x 4, 2x6) and Parthiv Patel (51 n.o., 37b, 9x4).
So assured were they in their march, that Simmons helped himself to mighty heaves over the long-on ropes to take his side into three figures. To see the team cross the line came captain Rohit Sharma, who also dealt a boundary-clearing blow.
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To never let the Sunrisers batsmen settle down seemed to be the Mumbai attack’s approach, after the host chose first strike. Epitomising the effort was man-of-thematch Mitchell McClenaghan, who finished with three for 16.
The assault began with a double blow early in the innings, reducing Sunrisers’ batting, its strongpoint, into a weakness. Malinga had Dhawan’s off-stump erupting from the earth, while Warner’s miscued pull off McClenaghan soared skywards, Pollard from point beating two others to pouch the ball.
With Moises Henriques and Eoin Morgan facing stifling field placements and persistent hostility from the pacemen, the host had just 21 a quarter of the way into the contest, a far cry from the fifties notched up in facile fashion in equal time, right until the last match.
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Two of its leading men had retraced their steps to the dugout, taking its PowerPlay toll to three when Morgan tried to pat McClenaghan’s snorter upwards but instead played into the hands of third man Simmons.
The singles and twos with the odd boundary thrown in from Henriques and K.L. Rahul proved precious little as the attack’s stranglehold proved difficult to shake off.
Sensing Henriques anxiety to open up, Suchith lured him out of the crease and Parthiv dislodged the bails.
Naman Ojha next fell first ball, lobbing a straight catch to Rohit Sharma at cover.
The pressure perhaps got to Rahul who chipped Harbhajan into the woodwork, leaving the host’s endeavour in even more disarray. Sunrisers’ tail wagged, Steyn slamming three boundaries, which couldn’t quite make up for lapses earlier.