Images from Thursday’s IPL match between Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad, in Mumbai.
Mumbai Indians beat Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Super Over to qualify for the play-offs of the Indian Premier League, at the Wankhede Stadium, in Mumbai, on Thursday.
Opting to bat first, Mumbai Indians posted 162 for five in the allotted 20 overs, thanks to an unbeaten 69 off 58 balls by Quinton de Kock, before Manish Pandey’s 71 off 47 balls enabled Sunrisers Hyderabad tie the score.
In the Super Over, Sunrisers batted first, with Pandey, who scored an unbeaten 71 earlier, and Mohammed Nabi opening the innings.
They were on the backfoot immediately as Pandey, after slicing the first delivery from Jasprit Bumrah square on the off-side, was run-out going for a difficult second run.
Bumrah’s second delivery was a full toss and Martin Guptill hit it straight down the ground for a single. The India pacer then bowled short and Nabi cleared the mid-wicket fence for a six to give Sunrisers hope of posting a fighting total.
However, Bumrah had his revenge as he cleaned up Nabi with a quick yorker. Sunrisers could muster only eight from the Super Over while losing both their wickets.
In reply, Mumbai opened with the duo of Hardik Pandya and Kieron Pollard while Sunrisers chose Rashid Khan to bowl the Super Over.
Hardik started off with a six off the first delivery over long-off and took a single off the next.
Pollard then completed formalities, clipping the next ball through mid-wicket for two runs to take Mumbai to victory, with three deliveries to spare.
Mumbai have 16 points from 13 outings and a game left, on Sunday against Kolkata Knight Riders, while Sunrisers Hyderabad are placed fourth with 12 points.
Earlier, Sunrisers Hyderabad's bowlers dished out a clinical performance to restrict Mumbai Indians to 162 for 5.
Needing a victory to stay in the race for a play-offs berth, the Sunrisers bowlers, led by pacer Khaleel Ahmed (3-42), pegged Mumbai back after Rohit Sharma decided to bat first.
He was ably supported by the Afghan spin duo of Rashid Khan (0-21) and Mohammed Nabi (1-24) and Bhuvaneshwar Kumar (1-29).
For Mumbai, only South African De Kock made a noteworthy contribution, scoring an unbeaten 69 off 58 balls in a lone battle.
A late cameo from Krunal Pandya (9 not out off 3 balls) ensured Mumbai crossed the 160-run mark.
De Kock, who hammered six fours and two sixes in his 58 ball-knock on a difficult Wankhede track, lacked support from the other end.
The left-handed batsman, who opened the innings, made his intentions clear in the fourth over by hammering Bhuvaneshwar for two fours. He and Suryakumar Yadav (23 off 17 balls, 3x4, 1x6) rallied the Mumbai innings with a 54-run stand for the second wicket after a well-settled Rohit Sharma (24; 5x4) departed in the sixth over.
Rohit and De Kock added 36 runs for the first wicket, in which Rohit hit five fours. But leg-spinner Rashid Khan put the brakes on Mumbai's scoring as he conceded just a single in the fifth over.
Suryakumar gave Khaleel his second wicket, offering an easy catch to Rashid Khan in the 12th over.
Thereafter Mumbai suffered a middle-order collapse as Evin Lewis (1) and Hardik Pandya (18 off 10 balls) fell in quick succession.
Even the hard-hitting West Indian Kieron Pollard (10) was unable to display his usual attacking game.
Sunrisers’s chase of 163 runs began with Wriddiman Saha (25 off 15 balls) and Martin Guptill (15 off 11) adding 40 for the first wicket, before Saha was sent back by Bumrah. The bowler struck again, trapping Guptill in front of the wicket in the sixth over.
Left-arm spinner Krunal Pandya (2-22) struck early, trapping Kane Williamson (3) in the eighth over, a decision that went Mumbai's way after a successful review.
The visitors were in a spot of bother at 65-3, but Pandey and Vijay Shankar (12 off 17 balls) rallied the innings with a 33-run stand, before Krunal struck again in the 14th over, sending Shankar back.
Hyderabad needed 41 runs from 18 balls, but Malinga (0-37) conceded 12 as the equation was brought down to 29 runs off 12. Then Bumrah (2-31) gave away 12 runs in the penultimate over, with Manish Pandey hitting two fours.
Hardik had struck in his first over when Abhishek Sharma edged to ‘keeper De Kock, after which Hyderabad were almost out of the contest before Nabi (31 off 20 balls) and Pandey brought the visitors back.
They needed 17 runs off the last over and the equation was brought down to seven by the time Hardik braced up to bowl the final delivery. But Manish Pandey (71 not out off 47 balls) carted the all-rounder over long-on for a six to bring the scores level and force a Super Over, a first at the Wankhede Stadium.
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