KOLKATA FAIL TO RECOVER AFTER BEING BOWLED OUT FOR PALTRY 107
runal Pandya’s unbeaten 30-ball 45 helped Mumbai Indians record a facile six-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders in their Indian Premier League (IPL) second qualifier clash at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium yesterday.
Mumbai, who finished on 111/4 in 14.3 overs, will take on Steve Smith’s Rising Pune Supergiant in the final tomorrow.
Chasing just 108, Krunal joined skipper Rohit Sharma for a 54-run fourth wicket stand to steady Mumbai’s ship after early hiccups which left them on 34/3 at one stage.
Kolkata caused a flutter among Mumbai ranks scalping three wickets inside the first six overs. Piyush Chawla (2/34) was at the forefront of the early demolition, sending the dangerous Lendl Simmons (3) and Ambati Rayudu (6) back.
Once Rohit and Krunal saw off the initial few overs, it was Mumbai all the way as the latter played the role of aggressor with deft fours and lusty sixes to inflict a 16th defeat on their rivals in the two sides’ 21st meeting.
Krunal’s innings was laced with eight fours and no six. With him at the crease was Keiron Pollard (not out 9) when Krunal hit the winning runs.
Earlier, Mumbai leg-spinner Karn Sharma took four wickets to bowl out Kolkata for a paltry
Kolkata Knight Riders
107 all out in 18.5 overs I. Jaggi 28, S. Yadav 31, M. Johnson 2-28
111/4 in 14.3 overs R. Sharma 26, K. Pandya 45 n.o U. Yadav 1-23, P. Chawla 2-34
Mumbai Indians
107 in 18.5 overs. Karn (4/16) was brilliant on the night taking the wickets of Sunil Narine (10), Gautam Gambhir (12), Colin de Grandhomme (0) and Ishank Jaggi (28).
The men in purple, who usually score at a brisk pace in the powerplay overs, struggled to get going with the ball not coming on to the bat even as Gambhir continued his good form hitting the first four of the innings in the third over off Mitchell Johnson, playing in place of Mitchell McClenaghan.
Narine, kept quiet by Bumrah, Mitchell Johnson (2/28) and Lasith Malinga (1/24), cut loose with an uppish shot over deep midwicket for the first six of the innings before Karn outfoxed the West Indian spinner with a googly that saw Parthiv Patel effect an easy stumping.
Robin Uthappa (1) was trapped plumb by Bumrah.
Suryakumar Yadav (31) and Jaggi put a semblance of a fight with a 56-run association for the sixth wicket, but could not script a turnaround as the former fell in the 18th over.