At the score reading 65 runs for one wicket, it looked like Mumbai Indians had the match under control at the end of ten overs while bowling first against Delhi Daredevils at the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium in Delhi.
It took an inspired innings by fellow Mumbaikar Shreyas Iyer, who announced his arrival on the national stage, with a defining knock and pulled his team to an above par score to put pressure on the strong Mumbai batting lie-up. Mumbai eventually succumbed to their sixth loss in the Indian Premier League.
Iyer took the Mumbai attack by the collar and propelled the Daredevils to 190 runs on a placid pitch. The young tyro, who has had a fabulous first class season for Mumbai, showed why he is rated as a future India prospect with a mix of classical batting and untamed aggression. He planned his innings carefully and unleashed an array of strokes at the right time to cause a huge dent in Mumbai’s challenge.
Piling on the pressure
Finding an experienced ally in skipper JP Duminy, the duo piled pressure on the Mumbai attack, stitching up a 154-run partnership and taking the match away from their opponents. There was not much Mumbai skipper Rohit Sharma could do but to try and stem the stream of runs that were flowing from the bats of the left-right combination.
Once again, Mumbai’s bowling spearheads Lasith Malinga and Harbhajan Singh bowled neat spells, except one over where the experienced off-spinner was taken apart for 18 runs by Iyer. That over signaled the turn-around for Daredevils, who did not have too many runs on the board at that moment. When Iyer departed in the 17th over for a fabulous 83 runs off 56 balls, he had set the stage for his skipper and Angelo Mathews to add salt in Mumbai’s wounds.
Mumbai’s batting woes continued as they kept stumbling against a combination of pace and spin that Delhi kept serving them. Though Lendl Simmons and Parthiv Patel gave them a good start, their immediate departure did not allow Mumbai to come anywhere near the rising asking rate.
Duminy had taken a risk to go in with three spinners; two leggies, Imran Tahir, Amit Mishra and the left-armer Shahbaz Nadeem. They strategy paid a handsome dividend as the spinners helped slow down Mumbai’s innings and garnered five wickets in the process.
The loss of the mercurial Keiron Pollard made things very difficult for Mumbai in their big chase and though Sharma and Ambati Rayudu fought back with a 49-run partnership, the asking rate was beyond reach throughout their innings.
Bowling problems
Bowling has been the biggest worry faced by Mumbai in this tournament so far. While Malinga and Harbhajan have been tidy and have used their experience well, the rest of the attack has been falling short in playing a supporting role. The 20-over format does not give the bowlers any chance to settle down and anything off-line and length is punished with severity.
With things not working to Mumbai’s plans and their combination is disarray, thanks to Josh Hazelwood’s pullout and injuries of Aaron Finch and Corey Anderson, coach Ponting will have to use his legendry experience to inspire his team and instill a positive attitude. They may decide to zero in on their forte, which is batting, and use it to make inroads in the games ahead.
They face a rejuvenated Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday and will need an injection of positivity by the legends sitting in their dugout. Mumbai will also do well to remember their comeback in the last edition of the IPL when they comfortably made it to the play-offs after a disastrous start.
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It took an inspired innings by fellow Mumbaikar Shreyas Iyer, who announced his arrival on the national stage, with a defining knock and pulled his team to an above par score to put pressure on the strong Mumbai batting lie-up. Mumbai eventually succumbed to their sixth loss in the Indian Premier League.
Iyer took the Mumbai attack by the collar and propelled the Daredevils to 190 runs on a placid pitch. The young tyro, who has had a fabulous first class season for Mumbai, showed why he is rated as a future India prospect with a mix of classical batting and untamed aggression. He planned his innings carefully and unleashed an array of strokes at the right time to cause a huge dent in Mumbai’s challenge.
Piling on the pressure
Finding an experienced ally in skipper JP Duminy, the duo piled pressure on the Mumbai attack, stitching up a 154-run partnership and taking the match away from their opponents. There was not much Mumbai skipper Rohit Sharma could do but to try and stem the stream of runs that were flowing from the bats of the left-right combination.
Once again, Mumbai’s bowling spearheads Lasith Malinga and Harbhajan Singh bowled neat spells, except one over where the experienced off-spinner was taken apart for 18 runs by Iyer. That over signaled the turn-around for Daredevils, who did not have too many runs on the board at that moment. When Iyer departed in the 17th over for a fabulous 83 runs off 56 balls, he had set the stage for his skipper and Angelo Mathews to add salt in Mumbai’s wounds.
Mumbai’s batting woes continued as they kept stumbling against a combination of pace and spin that Delhi kept serving them. Though Lendl Simmons and Parthiv Patel gave them a good start, their immediate departure did not allow Mumbai to come anywhere near the rising asking rate.
Duminy had taken a risk to go in with three spinners; two leggies, Imran Tahir, Amit Mishra and the left-armer Shahbaz Nadeem. They strategy paid a handsome dividend as the spinners helped slow down Mumbai’s innings and garnered five wickets in the process.
The loss of the mercurial Keiron Pollard made things very difficult for Mumbai in their big chase and though Sharma and Ambati Rayudu fought back with a 49-run partnership, the asking rate was beyond reach throughout their innings.
Bowling problems
Bowling has been the biggest worry faced by Mumbai in this tournament so far. While Malinga and Harbhajan have been tidy and have used their experience well, the rest of the attack has been falling short in playing a supporting role. The 20-over format does not give the bowlers any chance to settle down and anything off-line and length is punished with severity.
With things not working to Mumbai’s plans and their combination is disarray, thanks to Josh Hazelwood’s pullout and injuries of Aaron Finch and Corey Anderson, coach Ponting will have to use his legendry experience to inspire his team and instill a positive attitude. They may decide to zero in on their forte, which is batting, and use it to make inroads in the games ahead.
They face a rejuvenated Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday and will need an injection of positivity by the legends sitting in their dugout. Mumbai will also do well to remember their comeback in the last edition of the IPL when they comfortably made it to the play-offs after a disastrous start.