Jason Roy smashed an unbeaten 91 as Delhi Daredevils defeated Mumbai Indians by seven wickets in a last-ball thriller in the Indian Premier League at the Wankhede Stadium.
Opener Roy made a mockery of a listless Mumbai bowling attack as he hammered six fours and as many sixes in his 53-ball knock to help Delhi overhaul a 195-run target to earn their first win of the season. It was the third successive loss for Mumbai and they remain without a point after three matches.
With 11 needed in the final over, Roy hammered Mustifizur Rahman for four and a six before playing out three dot balls. Delhi needed one run off the final ball and the Englishman connected it and completed the run to seal the victory along with Shreyas Iyer (27*) at the other end.
Roy and skipper Gautam Gambhir conjured up a 50-run stand for the first wicket. Roy made his intentions clear, hitting a four off Hardik Pandya. He then smashed a towering six and a four off Akila Dhananjaya as Delhi raced to 23/0 in two overs.
Hardik Pandya conceded 21 runs in his second over as Roy hammered him for two consecutive sixes over long on and square-leg respectively, and followed it with a four. But Gambhir (15), failed to convert his start, as he gave a sitter to Rohit Sharma off Rahman.
Leg-spinner Mayank Markanade was taken to the cleaner by Roy and Rishabh Pant (47 off 25 balls), who also played his role to perfection.
Pant did not spare Dhananjaya, hitting him for two sixes and a four as Delhi grabbed 19 runs of the tenth over. But Kieron Pollard brought Mumbai back into the game with a stunning diving catch at long-off off Pant – the visitors were at 119/2 at that stage. Glenn Maxwell’s (13) stay at the crease was cut short with Hardik taking a stunning catch.
Iyer and Roy ensured that there was no further damage and finally took their side home. Mumbai Indians’ batting, for the first time in the tournament, clicked with Suryakumar Yadav leading the way with a whirlwind fifty.
After being put to bat, the strategy of opening the innings with Yadav – instead of captain Rohit Sharma – and Evin Lewis worked wonderfully well, as they gave Mumbai a flying start with a 102-run-stand.
After Yadav (53 off 32 balls) and Lewis (48 off 28 balls) posted the century stand, their good work was continued by Ishan Kishan (44 off 23 balls). Mumbai’s lower-order batsmen, though, failed to sustain the tempo and the total fell well below what the openers had promised.
Yadav and Lewis made their intentions clear early in the innings, picking up 15 runs in the first over. Mumbai raced to 84/0 after the powerplay, their highest score in IPL history during that phase. Spinner Rahul Tewatia applied the brakes and send Lewis back, who was caught by Jason Roy at mid-off. Lewis smashed four fours and as many sixes.
Tewatia then trapped Surya in front of the wicket as Mumbai lost two quick wickets. Surya, who hit seven fours and a six, unsuccessfully reviewed the decision. But Mumbai lost Rohit (18), Krunal Pandya (11) and Hardik Pandya (2) in quick succession as Delhi bowlers made a strong comeback in the death overs.