In a star-studded final Sushant Singh Rajpur, Kriti Sanon and Rohit Sharma’s wife Ritika Sharma in attendance

Mumbai Indians defeated Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS) in a low-scoring final to win the Indian Premier League (IPL) title here on Sunday.

In a match that went right down to the last ball, Mumbai registered a one-run victory in front of packed stands at the Rajiv Gandhi International stadium.

This is Mumbai’s third IPL title.

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Chasing a target of 130 runs, Pune could only manage to post 128/6 in their 20 overs.

Australian fast bowler Mitchel Johnson was the most successful for Mumbai with figures of 3/26, while young pacer Jasprit Bumrah also played a crucial role, returning figures of 26/2 in four excellent overs.

Veteran Sri Lankan pacer Lasith Malinga also bowled well and was unlucky not to manage a wicket. He conceeded just 21 runs in his four overs.

Pune skipper Steven Smith led from the front scoring a fighting half-century in a losing cause. He notched up 51 runs off 50 deliveries with two boundaries and an equal number of sixes before falling in the last over.

Pune started off on a shaky note when Bumrah trapped Rahul Tripathi leg before. Ajinkya Rahane and Smith tried to rebuild the innings with a 54-run partnership before Kieron Pollard pulled off a superb catch at long on to send the captain back to the pavilion.

With the Mumbai bowlers maintaining a tight line, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Smith found the going tough and could only add 27 runs between them in as many balls.

Dhoni scored 10 runs in 13 balls before falling to a poor shot in the 17th over, slashing a Bumrah delivery which was slightly outside off-stump but only managed an easy top edge to wicket-keeper Parthiv Patel. His departure seemed to put the pressure on the Pune batsmen.

Malinga conceded just five runs in the 18th over and Bumrah bowled another miserly over in the 19th to put pressure. With 11 runs needed off the final over, Manoj Tiwary started with a boundary to square leg off Johnson but an attempted smash into the stands off the very next ball saw him caught at long on by Pollard.

Smith fell on third ball, caught by Ambati Rayudu at the cover boundary. Two runs came off the next ball but with four needed off the last ball, Daniel Christian was run out sending the Mumbai players into wild celebrations.

Earlier, braces by bowlers Jaydev Unadkat, Adam Zampa and Christian enabled Pune to restrict Mumbai to 129 for eight.

Mumbai’s top and middle order batsmen put up a horrific show against the disciplined bowling from Pune and the former were left reeling at 79/7 in the 15th over. All-rounder Krunal Pandya’s 47 off 38 deliveries pulled Mumbai out of the hole.

Opting to bat, Mumbai had a disastrous start as left-arm medium pacer Unadkat (2/19) removed Parthiv Patel (4) and Lendl Simmons (3) in the third over, reducing them to 8/2.

Mumbai skipper Rohit Sharma (24) and Rayudu (12) then weathered the storm briefly but the Pune bowlers continued to keep it tight. Young off-spinner Washington Sundar continued to be impressive, giving away only 13 runs in his four overs.

The partnership lasted for 33 runs as Rayudu was caught short of the crease while taking a single in the eighth over.

Mumbai’s batting ran into further trouble when Rohit and Pollard (7) fell to Australian leg-spinner Zampa (2/32) in the 11th over to be left at 65/5. Rohit pulled a half-pitched ball to Thakur at deep mid-wicket, while Pollard offered an easy catch to pouch for Tiwary at long-on.

After Zampa, Christian (2/34) removed all-rounder Hardik Pandya (10) in the 14th over, while in the next, Karn Sharma, a handy low-order batsman, was run out at 1, to leave Mumbai at 79/7.

Later, Krunal and Mitchell Johnson (13 not out) shared a strong 50-run partnership to take Mumbai to 129/8.

Putting up a horrendous show with both the bat and ball, Delhi Daredevils posted their lowest total of 66 all out in 13.4 overs as they lost to the Mumbai Indians by 146 runs — biggest defeat in terms of runs in the Indian Premier League (IPL) – here on Saturday.

Facing one of their remaining must-win matches after having eight points from 10 games, Delhi allowed Lendl Simmons and Kieran Pollard to hit blistering half-centuries as Mumbai posted a huge total of 212/3 in 20 overs at the Ferozeshah Kotla stadium.

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The home side’s batting was even more horrific than their bowling as they were bowled out for 66 — one run short of matching their lowest total of 67, posted earlier this edition against Kings XI Punjab on April 30. It was the third lowest total in the history of IPL — the infamy belonging to Royal Challengers Bangalore’s 49 against Kolkata Knight Riders last month.

Even though the target was huge, no one expected Delhi to surrender meekly, especially after the way they chased down 209-run target set by Gujarat Lions in their previous match here. But Delhi lost five batsmen in the Powerplay overs (six) with only 35 on the board. Pacer Mitchell McClanaghan delivered in the ball of the innings, removing Sanju Samson, who was caught by Simmons at deep square leg.

In the next over, Shreyas Iyer top-edged a short ball from Lasith Malinga and was caught by Harbhajan Singh at midwicket, reducing Delhi to 6/2 in 1.5 overs. Next to go was Rishabh Pant (0), who pulled pacer Jasprit Bumrah straight into the hands of Simmons at deep midwicket. Delhi vice-captain Karun Nair (21 off 15) too soon perished, offering a catch to Rohit at short midwicket off a delivery from off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, as the hosts reeled at 31/4 in 4.4 overs. Malinga struck again, getting rid of Corey Anderson (10) as the left-handed batsman offered an easy catch to Karn Sharma at dep midwicket.

Leg-spinner Sharma too revelled in Mumbai’s party, bagging the wickets of Marlon Samuels (1) and Kagison Rabada (0). Eventually, Delhi folded up for 66 and now have a slim chance of qualifying for the play-offs.

Earlier, Simmons, playing his first match of the campaign, starred from the start with a knock of 66 off 43 deliveries, featuring five fours and four sixes, while Pollard scored a belligerent 63 not out off 35 balls, milking four sixes. Asked to bat, Simmons and Parthiv Patel (25) gave the visitors a flying start, putting up 79 runs for the first wicket in 8.4 overs. At the end of the Powerplay overs (6), Mumbai were handsomely placed at 60/1.

West Indian Simmons, who replaced Jos Buttler in the team, was particularly impressive, using the long handle to good effect. He wasn’t afraid of going on the backfoot to hit towards the cover and was equally at ease against the short deliveries aimed at him by Delhi pacers Zaheer Khan, Kagiso Rabada and Pat Cummins.

Parthiv (25 off 22) played a perfect foil to Simmons till leg-spinner Amit Mishra ended his innings when the left-hander stepped out and missed a googly, only to be stumped by wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant.

Simmons then completed his fifty off 38 deliveries, as he and Pollard took Mumbai innings forward. Pollard made his intention clear from the outset, hitting Mishra for two sixes in the 11th over. Simmons gave further proof of his power-hitting by hitting Cummins and Corey Anderson for two sixes, before being caught by Marlon Samuels off, with Mumbai at 116/2 in 12.3 overs. Pollard, however, continued to assault the bowlers, despatching two more deliveries from Mishra over long on in the next over.

Mumbai captain Rohit Sharma (10)’s wicket, however, gave some relief to the hosts. The right-hander unsuccessfully pulled Rabada and the ball landed in the hands of Mishra at short fine-leg, as Mumbai lost their third wicket for 153 runs in 15.3 overs.

Meanwhile Pollard completed his fifty in 29 balls with a powerful straight drive off Cummins. He later got good support from Hardik Pandya (29 not out off 14) as they helped Mumbai register a mighty total — which they easily defended.

IANS

Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS) posted 160/6 against Mumbai Indians in their Indian Premier League encounter at the Wankhede Stadium on Monday.

Openers Ajinkya Rahane (38) and Rahul Tripathi (45) were the major contributors for Pune’s cause.

Both openers started off on a good note, slamming more than 70 runs in 10 overs. Rahane and Tripathi forged a 76-run partnership with a healthy 8.00 run rate.

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But just when things seemed going good for the visitors, leg-spinner Karn Sharma provided a much needed breakthrough for the Mumbia Indians in form of Rahane’s wicket.

Karn delivered a top-spin and Rahane got cramped while trying to play a cut shot and as a result, the bowler took a fantastic catch to make Pune 76/1.

Rahane played 32 balls and slammed five fours and a six.

Incoming batsman Steve Smith (17) then joined Tripathi and added 17 runs for the second wicket, but Tripathi was sent packing in the 12th over by Karn. His 31-ball knock was laced with three boundaries and two sixes.

Skipper Smith was also back to the pavilion in the next over thanks to veteran off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, which reduced Pune to 104/3. Smith played 12 balls and hit two boundaries.

Middle-order batsmen Mahendra Singh Dhoni (7) and Ben Stokes (17) then added 22 runs in 3.1 overs before the England batsman was dismissed by pacer Mitchell Johnson in the 17th over.

Dhoni, who played a match winning knock against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the last match, failed to click this time. While trying a big one, the Ranchi stumper missed the ball completely and got bowled by pacer Jasprit Bumrah.

With scoreboard reading 138/5 in 18 overs, Manjot Tiwary (22) and Daniel Christian (8) shifted the gears. The Bengal batsman took back to back fours in the last over before he was adjudged leg before wicket in the fourth ball of the final over.

The fall of Tiwary’s wicket brought in Washington Sundar (2), who along with Christian completed the proceedings and helped the team to get a challenging 160/6 in their allotted 20 overs.

For Mumbai, Karn and Bumrah scalped two wickets each while Johnson and Harbhajan chipped in with one wicket each.

IANS

On a roll after registering their fifth win on the trot, Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma said Thursday’s 8-wicket win against Kings XI Punjab, will give the team the kind of momentum they needed heading into the business end of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2017.

“So hopefully we can continue our winning streak. The good thing we’ve done is focussing on one particular opposition and we are going to do that again,”

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Chasing a mammoth 199, Mumbai rode on destructive half centuries from Englishman Jos Buttler and young Nitish Rana to thrash the hosts by eight wickets with more than four overs to spare at the Holkar Cricket Stadium here.

“Incredible game to be part of. Something which reminded me of 2014, when we chased 190 against Rajasthan Royals in 14 overs,” Rohit said after the match.

“To be able to chase this target in 15.3 overs is fantastic. The way Jos and Parthiv batted at the start was magnificent. That’s the kind of firepower we have. Parthiv is coming off a great domestic season and he’s taken that confidence into IPL. That’s the kind of start we required chasing 199.”

Rohit also praised South African star Hashim Amla, who fired his maiden T20 hundred (104 not out of 60 balls) to set the tone for Kings XI Punjab’s mammoth 198/4 in the first innings.

“Amla played one of the finest knocks we would ever see but we finished up really well. When we came back to the change room the talk was that the ground is small and we have the batters to do it. That was pretty evident in the first six overs,” he said.

Rohit, however brushed aside any concerns with the bowlers, who were taken to the cleaners by Punjab skipper Glenn Maxwell and Amla in the later part of the innings.

“Not really it’s something which we have to look into. They are proven match winners and they have done it for years, even in international cricket it’s a lot of pressure, it’s always challenging. It’s just about backing them and the management does that,” he said.

“They will come good. It’s just the first half of the tournament, the second half becomes crucial, the table keeps changing so you have to be on the money, you can’t lose momentum,” he added.

Englishman Buttler, who struck form with a 37-ball 77, said the wicket was perfect for his kind of stroke play and more satisfying as he was desperate to get back among the runs.

“Found really good touch in the tournament, been desperate to kick on, nice to put in a contribution. Striking the ball well, it’s a small ground and a fantastic wicket,” said Buttler, who was adjudged the man-of-the-match.

“Luckily we won the toss, you’d think 200 was a really good score. I think today, chasing that kind of total was great for me because I could go from ball one without thinking. I’ve put a lot of pressure on myself, trying too hard to score the runs. Today, when you’re chasing a big score, you can relax and play your shots. Keep a still base and do the rest,” he added.

IANS

Rana, Pandya helped the Mumbai Indians assert their dominance over the Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium with a thrilling four-wicket win.

Chasing 179 for victory, Mumbai — who have now won 14 times in their 19 meetings with KKR — were always up against it losing wickets at regular intervals. At one point the hosts were reeling at A119 for 5 when Hardik Pandya joined Nitish Rana in the middle.

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Needing 60 runs off the last 24 balls, Rana went from strength to strength, going from 29 off 23 at one stage to 50 off 28.A

Hardik at the other end, smacked the winning runs in his much-needed 11-ball 29 cameo in which he hit three fours and two sixes.

Rana’s well paced essay which turned the match on its head after KKR had managed to shave off half of Mumbai batting for a modest score, was laced with five boundaries and three over-boundaries. The pair stitched together a 41-run stand for the sixth wicket.

KKR suffered due to poor bowling at the death from New Zealander Trent Boult (3.5/47) and Ankit Rajpoot (3/37) as the duo went for 19 runs each in the 17th and 18h over respectively. In the last over, Mumbai needed 11 runs and they reached the target with one ball to spare.

Mumbai got off to a flying start as their openers Parthiv Patel (30, 27b; 3×4, 1×6) and Jos Buttler joined hands for a 65-run association for the first wicket.

Patel, who has the third-worst average in the IPL for anyone to have opened in the at least 20 innings, looked to be settling down as the Gujarat Ranji Trophy winning captain slog-swept chinaman Kuldeep Yadav for a huge six over wide long-on before the left-arm spinner got the back of the 32-year old.

Parthiv looked to sweep down the leg side again coming across his stumps with the ball straightening from off stump towards middle for a simple leg before wicket decision.

Buttler, who was looking good for his 28 (22b 1×4 2×6), followed suit in the next over, Ankit Rajpoot removing the England wicketkeeper who played across the line getting LBW in the process.

Skipper Rohit Sharma (2), who raised a few eyebrows by sending Rana ahead of him at No.3, lasted just six balls before Sunil Narine brought about the third leg before wicket of the innings.

In came Krunal Pandya, who starred with the ball (3/24), with his team in a spot of bother losing three wickets for just nine runs.

Together Krunal and Rana added 23 runs in good time for the fourth wicket but KKR dealt the hosts another timely blow.

Rajpoot was in the thick of things again, managing to get a thin edge off Krunal who tried to work the ball fine down the leg side with keeper Robin Uthappa pouching a regulation catch.

At 97/4, Keiron Pollard had a job to do when he joined Rana in the middle. The big-hitting West Indian though failed to conjure up any magic as KKR bowlers Kuldeep, Chris Woakes and Narine bottled up the pair towards the end of their essay.

Trying to up the ante, Pollard went for a heave but could manage as far as substitute Rishi Dhawan at third man.

There was no stopping Rana though. In the 18th over, the Delhi lad made Boult leak 19 runs with Hardik Pandya also joining the party.

There seemed to be no respite for Rajpoot as well before the Kanpur medium pacer sent the dangerous Rana back in the hut as the latter tried to make room for himself but holed in to Narine at point. In the end of the over, Rajpoot conceded 19 as well leaving Boult to defend 11 runs in the last over, which he eventually couldn’t.

Earlier, a rampaging Manish Pandey led with an unbeaten 81, as KKR overcame mid-innings hiccups to post a challenging 178/7.

We welcome one of the most elegant & graceful batsmen of the modern era, @MahelaJay as the new Head Coach of Mumbai Indians. #WelcomeMahela pic.twitter.com/wFlulxw4iM

— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) November 18, 2016

Former Sri Lankan skipper Mahela Jayawardene was on Friday appointed the head coach of Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Mumbai Indians (MI).

The 39-year-old, who replaced Ricky Ponting, played for Delhi Daredevils, Kings XI Punjab and now defunct Kochi Tuskers Kerala in the cash-rich league.

“We welcome one of the most elegant & graceful batsmen of the modern era, @MahelaJay as the new Head Coach of Mumbai Indians. #WelcomeMahela,” MI wrote on their official Twitter page.

Paltan, our new Head coach, @MahelaJay has a special message for you. Listen up! #WelcomeMahela pic.twitter.com/gxGBoMGwBx

— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) November 18, 2016

Ponting spent four seasons with the team, the last two as full time head coach. Jayawardene has rich experience in limited overs cricket, having being part of the winning World T20 2014 Sri Lankan squad and leading the country to the final of 2007 ICC World Cup.

Former Sri Lankan skipper, @MahelaJay appointed as the new Head Coach.
Read more- https://t.co/Z0k9xR1C7O#WelcomeMahela pic.twitter.com/45wH3uFKxr

— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) November 18, 2016

“I am very excited by the appointment and glad that the Mumbai Indians management appreciated my presentation and ideas. I am looking forward to working with a really talented squad, all the support staff, and the owners to help strengthen the two-time IPL champions,” Jayawardene said in a statement,

“Mumbai Indians have the most passionate fan base in the IPL and I have always been wowed by the amazing support the team gets at Wankhede Stadium. In what is a new chapter in my career, I will be striving hard to bring them more on-field success and joy,” he added.

Jayawardene will soon be traveling to Mumbai to conduct a detailed meeting with the club management and to take charge of his new office.

IANS