The Mumbai Indians forced the Lucknow Super Giants to chase a 145-run lead all the way to the end, in a dramatic reversal of events from the early IPL.
Following up his explosive century in Chennai last week, Marcus Stoinis‘ shrewd attack in the PowerPlay enabled LSG to overcome a frustrating Hardik Pandya middle-overs stint.
Before his partner KL Rahul made up for a shaky start with three fours and a six in the fifth over, Stoinis continued to pile up boundaries quickly.
Stoinis scored 62 off 45 deliveries, but Hardik kept MI afloat by getting rid of Rahul and Deepak Hooda before the spinners skittered in some sparing overs. After keeping Jasprit Bumrah wicketless and surviving a few hard overs towards the end, LSG’s bottom order needed another 27 balls to remove the final 30 runs, creating an unusually nerve-wracking last-over finale.
The powerful collapse
Mumbai’s hopes of qualifying for the playoffs may have ended considerably sooner than normal for the “comeback men.” Throughout the season, they had struggled to equalise their combinations on high-scoring decks under better circumstances; nevertheless, on a sticky Lucknow ground, the knockout blow was delivered.
Lucknow chose to bowl, and their simple preparations paid off as Mumbai were restrained within the PowerPlay in a match that lifted the morale of the bowlers and chiselled the irrational willow-wielding.
Hours after India revealed their T20 World Cup roster to a divided public, the MI top-order, adorned with key players from the national T20I side, would have wanted to avoid an embarrassing slip-up.
After hitting one and two runs on his previous two birthdays in the IPL, Rohit Sharma’s worrying trend continued with another wet squib. On Tuesday, the Indian captain turned 37. He teased with a clever ramp for four, but then he died on four out of five deliveries after mistiming left-armer Mohsin Khan’s longer ball straight to cover. Although Suryakumar Yadav started the match with a fierce six against Marcus Stoinis, he was next in line for punishment. With three overs remaining in the PowerPlay, the solid Australian was used in a new role up front and confined Suryakumar, finding a tame feather to the keeper down the leg-side.
Then, in a brain-fade sprint from the crease, Ravi Bishnoi’s accurate throw from backward point pinned Mumbai’s crisis man Tilak Varma down before a rearguard counter, leaving the left-hander inches short at the striker’s end.
Hardik, his team in ruins, was unable to produce another quality hit at bat. Naveen-ul-Haq threw in some new bait on the broader length, and Hardik fell off the first ball. He pushed hard and gave Rahul a good catch off the thick outside edge. MI had to constantly catch up to get a respectable total after leaving the PowerPlay at 27 for 4, which was the second-lowest of the season.
Mayank’s hesitant comeback
Rahul, who rejoined the team after seven games, put the left-handed duo of Nehal Wadhera and Ishan Kishan under duress in the eighth over with the help of speedy Mayank Yadav. Mayank surprised a crouching Wadhera with a strong bumper that raised just enough to crash into the helmet, even though he was unable to push it into the high 150s.
In his second over, Mayank set up Ishan Kishan with another rising delivery that almost undid Kishan, but Ashton Turner was unable to get a grip on the ball at deep mid-wicket.
What followed was a slow 53-run partnership between Wadhera and Kishan that required 52 deliveries. Kishan was dismissed by Ravi Bishnoi’s googly, but Wadhera met Mayank squarely, blocking two consecutive sixes in his third over.
After casting Mohammad Nabi with a sloppy delivery, Mayank would have felt as though he had reached the pinnacle of his game. On a night of mixed returns, he was pulled off the pitch due to a recurring niggle, but his teammates came together to limit Mumbai to 144.
