Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], April 23 : Rohit Sharma struck a scintillating 70 off 46 balls to guide Mumbai Indians (MI) to a dominant seven-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in their Indian Premier League (IPL) clash on Wednesday. The victory, sealed with 26 balls to spare, marked MI's fifth of the season and propelled them to third place in the points table.
Chasing a modest target of 144, Mumbai got off to a shaky start, losing opener Ryan Rickelton for 11 with just 13 runs on the board. However, Rohit, in red-hot form, took charge alongside Will Jacks. The duo steadied the innings with a 64-run partnership, laying a solid foundation for the chase.
Jacks departed for 22 off Zeeshan Ansari's bowling in 9.2 overs, with MI at 77/2. In came Suryakumar Yadav, who matched Rohit's attacking intent with flair. Together, the pair added 53 runs, entertaining the crowd with a flurry of boundaries and sixes.
Rohit was eventually dismissed by Eshan Malinga for a well-made 70, laced with eight fours and three sixes. This marked Rohit's second consecutive half-century--a feat he last achieved in 2016--providing a timely return to form amid concerns over his recent performances.
Suryakumar Yadav remained unbeaten on 40 off just 19 balls, finishing the match with a boundary off Ansari. Tilak Varma provided unbeaten for 2 at the other end as MI cruised to 146/3 in 15.4 overs.
Among SRH bowlers, Zeeshan Ansari, Jaydev Unadkat, and Eshan Malinga picked up a wicket each, but their efforts were not enough to contain a rejuvenated MI batting lineup.
Earlier, a commendable 99-run partnership between Heinrich Klaasen and Abhinav Manohar helped Sunrisers Hyderabad survive a top order collapse, posting 143/8 in 20 overs against Mumbai Indians.
SRH was 35/5 at one point; however, a 99-run stand between Klaasen (71) and Abhinav (43) powered SRH to a score that would give them something to fight for. A key aspect of SRH's comeback was gathering 53 runs in last five overs. Trent Boult (4/26) was MI's top bowler.
After MI put SRH to bat first, the Orange side was off to a poor start as after just two runs in the first over, Trent Boult drew first blood, removing Travis Head for a four-ball duck with a fine catch at deep backward square leg by Naman Dhir. SRH was 2/1 in 1.2 overs.
SRH could barely breathe as Ishan Kishan was given out on a controversial decision to Deepak Chahar, but he did not even edge the ball to the wicketkeeper Ryan Rickelton. Nonetheless, Kishan struggled to find form after a century in the first match, scoring just one run. SRH was 9/2 in 2.1 overs.
Boult got the big wicket of Abhishek for just eight runs in eight balls, as he tried to go airy, but was caught by Puthur at cover point. Deepak also got Nitish Kumar Reddy, who continued his poor run in the tournament with just two runs in six balls. SRH was 13/4 in 4.1 overs.
At the end of the powerplay, which was very poor for SRH, the Orange Army was 24/4, with Aniket Verma (9*) and Heinrich Klaasen (2*) unbeaten.
Half of the SRH line-up was inside the hut as a wicket to Hardik Pandya sent back Aniket for 12 in 14 balls, with Rickelton getting the catch. SRH was 35/5 in 8.3 overs.
The 10th over bowled by Puthur relieved some pressure for SRH, as Klaasen smashed him for two fours and a six, collecting 15 runs in total for his team. SRH reached the 50-run mark in 9.4 overs with a four from Klaasen towards deep square leg.
The next over saw Klaasen collect three boundaries against the MI skipper Hardik, looting 16 more runs for his team and attempting a fight back.
However, the next three overs gave away just 13 runs, with Mitchell Santner giving away just five runs in two overs while Jasprit Bumrah gave away eight, putting the brakes on the rising run-rate.
Klaasen reached his first fifty of the season in 34 balls, with seven fours and a six. At the end of 15 overs, SRH was 90/5, with Klaasen (51*) and Abhinav Manohar (12*) unbeaten.
The 17th over saw Abhinav taking on Bumrah bravely, bringing up the 100-run mark in 16.1 overs. Klaasen, Manohar ended up hitting the pace spearhead for two fours, adding 11 runs in total.
In the 18th over, SRH continued to accumulate runs, as Abhinav launched Hardik for a four and six, with Klaasen and him collecting 13 runs.
The partnership of 99 runs between Klaasen and Abhinav ended as Klaasen, attempting to get a second successive six against Bumrah, gave the ball into the hands of Tilak Varma. Klaasen was gone for 71 in 44 balls, with nine fours and four sixes. SRH was 134/6 in 19 overs and Bumrah also got his 300th T20 wicket.
In the final over, Abhinav collected a six against Boult, but was later cleaned up for 43 in 27 balls, with two fours and three sixes. SRH was 142/7 in 19.4 overs.SRH finished at 143/8, after Boult cleaned SRH skipper Pat Cummins on the final ball. However, SRH's comeback was commendable, as they scored 53 runs in the final five overs.
Boult was MI's top wicket-taker with 4/26 in four overs. Deepak also picked 2/12 in four overs. Pandya and Bumrah got a wicket each.