Mumbai Indians’ Hardik Pandya hits out during his 8-ball 21 against Chennai Super Kings during the IPL. (BCCI)

 

Agencies/Chennai


An extraordinary assault by Hardik Pandya and Ambati Rayudu in the penultimate over powered the Mumbai Indians to an improbable six-wicket win in the Indian Premier League clash against the table-toppers Chennai Super Kings at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chepauk, Chennai yesterday
CSK scored 158 for five and in reply, Mumbai reached 159 for four in 19.2 overs. The victory leapfrogged Mumbai to fourth place on the IPL table. It looked as if Dwayne Bravo and the CSK spinners had masterminded a win for the hosts, as Mumbai needed 30 runs off the final 12 balls for victory. But Pandya and Rayudu slammed four sixes in the penultimate over, bowled by the inexperienced spinner Pawan Negi, to take Mumbai to the brink.
They added a boundary in the final over, bowled by Bravo to take them home.
Their 30-run onslaught off the final 8 balls ensured a win against all odds. Rayudu finished with an unbeaten 34 off 19 balls, including a four and three sixes. Pandya, who plummeted three of the four sixes off Negi in that 19th over, managed 21 of a mere eight deliveries.
Parthiv Patel and Lendl Simmons had given Mumbai Indians flying start, putting on 84 in 10 overs. Inexplicably, the openers lost their way through poor decision-making and ill-judged shots and were dismissed in the same over by R. Ashwin, who finished with 2-17 in four overs.
The visitors slumped to 86 for three after 12 overs to give Chennai a sniff and the hosts clawed their way back even further through excellent spin bowling by Negi and Ravindra Jadeja as well change of pace by the seam bowler Bravo.
Mumbai stumbled to 108 for three after 16 overs and needed some spectacular pyrotechnics to reach the target. Rayudu hammered two straight sixes off Ashish Nehra to lift Mumbai to 125 for three after 17 overs. Bravo then struck in the 18th over with slow delivery to dismiss Rohit Sharma, caught at deep wicket by Suresh Raina. Mumbai looked out of sorts on 129 for four after 18 overs before that onslaught by Pandya and Rayudu stunned CSK.
Earlier, a late charge by MS Dhoni and Negi saw CSK plunder 55 runs in the final five overs. Negi ignited CSK in the latter part of the innings with 36 off only 17 deliveries. Dhoni finished unbeaten on 39 off 32 balls.
A brisk start by Brendon McCullum and Dwayne Smith lifted CSK to 44 in the fifth over before the belligerent McCullum’s failed pull shot found Pandya at deep midwicket and he perished for 23. The Mumbai spinners gave the visitors a measure of control in the middle-period on a slow pitch. Suresh Raina was superbly caught by Pandya on the midwicket-boundary for 10 as he failed to break the shackles off Jagadeesha Suchith.
In the next over, Smith holed out to Pandya off Harbhajan Singh for 27 and CSK slipped to 65 for three. Du Plessis and Dhoni rallied briefly without truly breaking the shackles and Chennai reached 103 for three after 15 overs. Negi exploited the full crease shrewdly as he caressed the ball over the inner ring. Suchith was the pick of the attack with his 1-21 in four overs.
Brief scores
Chennai Super Kings 158 for 5 (Dhoni 39*,
Negi 36) lost to Mumbai Indians 159 for 4
(Parthiv 45, Simmons 38, Rayudu 34*,
Pandya 21* Ashwin 2-17) by six wickets