Mumbai: Defending champions Mumbai Indians pulled off a sensational five-wicket win over Rajasthan Royals to make the play-offs of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Wankhede Stadium here yesterday.
Set a target of 190, Mumbai Indians made 195 for five in 14.4 overs and pipped Rajasthan Royals for the fourth berth in the play-offs on the basis of a better run rate.
Corey Anderson scripted the sensational win for Mumbai Indians with his brilliant unbeaten 95 off 44 balls that was studded with nine fours and six sixes.
Aditya Tare swung James Faulkner over the backward square-leg fence for a six and scripted Mumbai Indians’ monumental win.
Tare’s first-ball 6 clinched the defending champion a place in the play-off berth after being asked to chase 190 in 87 balls in order to achieve a superior net run rate. Mumbai Indians will now face Chennai Super Kings in the eliminator match at the Brabourne Stadium on Wednesday.
In Mohali, Kings XI Punjab ended their league-stage campaign on a high, beating Delhi Daredevils by seven wickets at the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) Stadium.
Punjab’s latest win took them to 22 points, four ahead of second-placed Kolkata Knight Riders, who will be their opponents in Qualifier 1. Both teams will have two bites of the cherry, with the winner directly making it to the final while the loser will take on the winners of the Eliminator.
Daredevils, with their ninth consecutive loss, ended the Indian Premier League (IPL) seventh season without a win on Indian soil. Their two solitary wins in 14 matches came in the UAE leg. They failed to register a win in nine matches in India.
Agencies
