IPL 2021: Mumbai Indians knocked out despite win over SRH
Sheikh Zayed Stadium witnessed a feast of runs in the final league match of IPL 2021 as Mumbai Indians registered a win over Sunrisers Hyderabad.
They restricted SRH on 193/8 while defending 236 runs. Rohit Sharma-led Mumbai needed a miracle for playoffs qualification but it couldn’t happen despite a fiery batting display.
For qualification, they had to restrict SRH for just 65 and claim a 171-run win to knockout Kolkata Knight Riders on run-rate.
With MI failing to pull off an impossible win, KKR became the fourth side to qualify for playoffs and they will face Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Eliminator.
Kishan goes ballistic
Ishan Kishan executed his shots from ball one, intending to give the best possible start to Mumbai. The 23-year-old struck fifty in just 16 balls, fastest of this season.
He batted with a strike rate of 262.50 where he charged every SRH bowler and scored 32-ball 84. The southpaw stroked 11 fours and four sixes.
Ishan was completely out of form in the UAE leg of the competition but consecutive fifties is a good sign for him and team India leading into the T20 World Cup.
“Intent was key. We knew we had to score around 250+. I know its not easy but the plan is simple. We just wanted to play our shots, we couldn’t be selfish. Cricket is a funny game,” Ishan opined during the innings break.
Suryakumar regains form
Mumbai kept losing wickets in the middle-overs after Ishan’s blazing start and someone had to play aggressively while staying till the end. Out of form, Suryakumar Yadav was the answer for Mumbai as he took the charge then, scoring a crucial 40-ball 82.
He smoked 13 fours and three massive sixes, timing his shots all across the park. His innings guided Mumbai to 235/9, their highest IPL score. Previously, they had scored 223/6 against Kings XI Punjab, (now Punjab Kings) in 2017.
“We had nothing to lose and had a target in our mind. So we kept running behind it. Happy to be on the winning side. World Cup is a big tournament, so looking forward to it.”
For SRH, all main bowlers went for over 10 runs per over but Jason Holder had something to cheer as he bagged four wickets in his spell. It was surprising to see Abhishek Mishra was not handed second over by captain Manish Pandey. He claimed two big wickets in the 13th over of Kieron Pollard (13) and Jamie Neesham (0).
Mumbai bowlers did their job on a batting paradise as SRH had a brilliant start. Openers Jason Roy (34) and Abhishek (33) put 64 in just 32 balls but SRH missed the plot in the middle-overs.
Pandey (69) and Priyam Garg (21) had a breezy partnership for the fifth wicket but it was not enough for SRH to goes past Mumbai’s total. SRH finished at bottom of the points table with six points only
