Chandigarh: Ashutosh Sharma almost single-handedly won Punjab Kings he game out of nowhere, but Mumbai Indians survived his stunning assault to win by nine runs in a thrilling match at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur on Thursday evening.
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- Over 15-19.2 (PBKS 183)
Ashutosh Sharma had almost pulled off a heist here but Mumbai made a comeback at the right moment and sealed the deal. Ashutosh after completing his half century got out when he played one straight into the hands of Mohammed Nabi at deep mid-wicket boundary. Harpreet Brar also gave a small contribution scoring 21 off 20 balls but got out in the second last over. Rabada smashed a first ball six to keep Punjab's hopes alive as there were required only 12 runs off last over, but got run out on the first ball in search of second run. And once again Punjab have lost their match in the final over of the game. It's their fifth loss of seven matches while Mumbai have won their third. - Over 11-14 (PBKS 128/7)
Once again, the iconic pair of the ongoing season for Punjab Kings- Ashutosh Sharma and Shashank Singh are on the crease. Ashutosh Sharma has looked in different form as he smashed three sixes and a boundary and give the boost to Punjab's innings which they were looking for. But then, Hardik Pandya made a right move and called Bumrah back into the attack and he removed the well set Shashank. Bumrah then bowled a no ball against Ashutosh and he hit him for a six over fine leg on free hit. Shepher bowled the 14th over and Ashutosh smacked him for a six on the first ball, but the right-hand bowler then made a nice comeback in the over and conceded only two single one of which came as a leg bye. - Over 7-10 (PBKS 87/6)
Shashank saw the leg-spinner bowling as an opportunity and smashed A six to Shreyas Gopal. But then, Harpreet Bhatia played one straight back to the bowler and lost his wicket in the same over. However, Shashank then again smashed a couple of sixes against Shreyas Gopal and brought back the momentum in his side's favour. But once again, they lost a wicket, this time its vice-captain Jitesh Sharma who was trapped in front of the stumps and again just when we all thought Punjab were ready to launch they lost a wicket. This has been a story for PBKS not just in one match, but throughout the tournament. They are ahead in the runs tally after the halfway stage, but they have lost 5 more wickets compared to their opponent. - Over 1-6 (PBKS 40/4)
MI pacers rip apart Punjab's top order, picking four crucial wickets in the powerplay. Coetzee removed opener Prabhsimran Singh in his first over and then Bumrah claimed wickets including Punjab skipper Sam Curran and Rilee Rossouw with a brilliant yorker. Punjab were on nine runs with just one ball bowled in the innings and then they found themselves at 40/4 after the powerplay. More importantly, they lost their most experienced or overseas batters including Liam Livingstone as well. Shashank Singh, arguably the most dependable batter of the season for PBKS, forged a small partnership and ensured that they won't lose another wicket in the powerplay.
End of Mumbai Indians' innings
- Over 15-20 (MI 130/2)
Tilak Varma and Surya took the charge against pacer Kagiso Rabada and smashed him for 18 runs, including a couple of sixes and a boundary. Sam Curran then picked a wicket of Suryakumar (78 off 53 balls) in the over with Prabhsimran taking a blinder at point. This is Surya's 17th score of 75 or more in T20 cricket, and it came under a strike rate of 160 the first time. However, skipper Hardik Pandya hit the third ball he faced in the over showing some intent. Tilak Varma continued to take the bowlers to the cleaners and hit Harshal Patel a six on the bouncer with an outstanding pull shot. But Harshal made a comeback in the over and got rid of Hardik on the final ball, who gave a sitter to the mid-wicket fielder. But then Sam Curran leaked 18 runs off his final over which took MI closer to the 200-run mark. However, Harshal Patel bowled an exceptional final over and picked a couple of wickets and ran out Mohammed Nabi on the final ball as Punjab pulled things back going into the break. - Over 11-15 (MI 130/2)
The scoring rate has decreased after the powerplay. However, they did a good thing that they didn't lose two or more wickets. It's not the pitch where a batter can start hitting from the word go after the ball gets old and the shine is gone. Suryakumar Yadav played some classy shots to inject some momentum. But, MI lost Rohit Sharma (36) in the process after getting caught at backward point. PBKS kept things very tight, with just 6 overs left and there's a lot of fuel left in MI's batting tank, but MI batters kept hitting boundaries and sixes and took the team's score to 130 after 15 overs. MI would be eyeing to start dealing in boundaries and sixes without thinking about their wickets. - Over 7-10 (MI 86/1)
Curran went to spin right after the powerplay. Harpreet Brar bowled a decent seventh over and conceded only four runs in his over. Rabada came into the attack and bowled some brilliant balls with pace. However, Rohit saw it as an opportunity and smashed six on a pull and made it a good over for his team. The runs are coming easily for the visitors and Punjab Kings need to create some pressure, either by bowling dot balls or taking a wicket as they cannot afford to let Rohit-Surya take the game away from their hands. Both batters struggled against Brar, but Surya still found a boundary. This also brings up a fifty partnership between these two. Surya played an exceptional lofted extra cover drive against Livingstone in the 10th over. This is a solid start for Mumbai Indians. They lost Ishan in the third over but this pair have stitched a 50+ stand and as long as they bat there's every chance Mumbai will get close to 180-200. Punjab Kings haven't allowed them to run away with the run rate but need wickets to keep it that way. - Over 1-6 (MI 54/1)
Punjab opened the attack with the part-time spinner Liam Livingstone, who bowled a decent first over. Pacer Arshdeep Singh didn't look in good rhythm as he bowled a little short, a little wide. He got punished for the same as both batters smashed a boundary each. Rabada came into the attack and provided an early breakthrough for Punjab Kings. He removed Ishan Kishan in his first over after the southpaw got caught at deep third-man. Surya and Rohit then took on Arshdeep Singh under the charge as they smashed a six and a couple of boundaries. Harshal Patel had almost got Rohit Sharma, but the batter survived with a review. Kagiso Rabada, who struck in his first over, didn't get the second over as Sam Curran brought himself into the attack. He bowled economical first five balls of the over despite conceding a boundary on the second ball. However, Rohit Sharma read the slower delivery and waited for the ball to come and hit it over the bowler's head for a six. - Impact Substitutes
Mumbai Indians: Akash Madhwal, Nuwan Thushara, Kumar Kartikeya, Piyush Chawla, Naman Dhir
Punjab Kings: Rahul Chahar, Vidhwath Kaverappa, Harpreet Bhatia, Shivam Singh, Rishi Dhawan - Playing XI
Punjab Kings: Rilee Rossouw, Prabhsimran Singh, Sam Curran(c), Jitesh Sharma(w), Liam Livingstone, Shashank Singh, Ashutosh Sharma, Harpreet Brar, Harshal Patel, Kagiso Rabada, Arshdeep Singh
Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya(c), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Mohammad Nabi, Gerald Coetzee, Shreyas Gopal, Jasprit Bumrah - Toss
Punjab Kings skipper Sam Curran won the toss and elected to field against Mumbai Indians.
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