Suryakumar, de Kock shine in MI's 4th consecutive win

Abu Dhabi, October 11, 2020

Defending champions Mumbai Indians (MI) once again showed why they are a force to reckon with as the Rohit Sharma-led team outclassed Delhi Capitals (DC) by five wickets in a top-of-the-table clash on Sunday night.

Suryakumar Yadav and opener-cum-stumper Quinton de Kock chipped in with a crucial 53 runs each to help MI, chasing a 163-run target, register their fourth win on the trot, and fifth overall, from seven games so far.

The win at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium also helped them leapfrog DC to reclaim the top spot in the points table.

Chasing the target, MI opener Rohit Sharma (5) departed early, thanks to Axar Patel who had him caught by Kasigo Rabada.

The fall of Sharma saw Suryakumar Yadav (53) joining de Kock (53) in the middle and the duo steered MI to the 50-run mark in 6.4 overs.

The partnership, however, didn't last long as Ravichandran Ashwin sent back de Kock in the 10th over with MI's scorecard reading 77/2. de Kock's knock saw four boundaries and three sixes.

Suryakumar and Ishan Kishan (28) then added 53 runs in the next 31 balls as MI recovered from the early damage.

Speedster Rabada finally got rid of Suryakumar in the 15th over before Marcus Stoinis further jolted the defending champions after sending back Hardik Pandya for a duck.

Just after MI managed another 22 runs to their total, Rabada sent Ishan Kishan back to the hut to raise DC hopes.

However, Keiron Pollard (11) and Krunal Pandya (12) dented DC's expectations as they comfortably drove their side home with two balls to spare.

For DC, Rabada picked two wickets for 28 runs while Axar, Ashwin, and Stoinis bagged a wicket each.

Earlier, some economical bowling by MI saw DC managing a fighting 162/4 in the allotted 20 overs.

Opting to bat first, DC lost in-form opener Prithvi Shaw (4) and Ajinkya Rahane (15) early.

However, Shikhar Dhawan (69 not out) kept one end intact and received good support from skipper Shreyas Iyer (42) in the middle as the pair anchored DC's innings.

The duo were involved in a crucial 85-run partnership for the third wicket.

After Iyer's departure in the 15th over, Marcus Stoinis (13) too, fell cheaply before Dhawan and Alex Carey added 32 runs in the final 21 balls to help DC post a respectable 162/4.

Dhawan's knock was decorated with six boundaries and a maximum.

Krunal Pandya picked couple of wickets conceding 26 runs while pacer Trent Boult managed one for 36 runs.

Brief scores: DC 162/4 wkts in 20 overs (Shikhar Dhawan 69 not out, Shreyas Iyer 42; Krunal Pandya 2/26) lost to MI 166/5 wkts in 19.4 overs (Quinton de Kock 53, Suryakumar Yadav 53, Kagiso Rabada 2/28) by 5 wickets

IANS/GloFans