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Mumbai Indians chased down 197 with remarkable ease, securing a seven wicket victory over the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in just 15.3 overs at the iconic Wankhede stadium in Mumbai on Thursday, April 11, 2024.
This win marked MI's second consecutive victory and propelled them to seventh place in the IPL standings.
While RCB posted a decent total thanks to half-centuries from Faf du Plessis and Rajat Patidar, their bowling attack faltered against a dominant Mumbai batting display.
Ishan Kishan's explosive 69 off 34 balls set the host for a big win. But the real fireworks came from Suryakumar Yadav, who followed Kishan's knock with a blistering 19-ball 52.
RCB's bowlers had no answers for the onslaught, and Mumbai cruised to victory with 4.3 overs to spare.
A look at the best knocks of the contest at the Wankhede stadium:
Ishan Kishan
Ishan single-handedly stole the show in the Powerplay, turning the chase on its head with a brutal assault on the RCB bowling attack.
RCB's bowlers started well, with Reece Topley and Mohammad Siraj swinging the new ball and keeping Ishan and Rohit Sharma in check. But a difficult dropped catch by Glenn Maxwell in the third over proved the turning point. Gifted a life, Ishan unleashed his fury.
Siraj felt the brunt of his wrath first, with two sixes and a four in a single over. Du Plessis, desperate to stop the bleeding, threw Maxwell's off-spin into the mix. This backfired spectacularly, as Ishan feasted on the bowling, reaching a jaw-dropping 50 off just 23 balls.
By the end of the Powerplay, Mumbai Indians sat on a dominant 72/0, with the chase seemingly a mere formality thanks to Ishan's power-hitting masterclass.
He defied the early swing, capitalised on his chances, and repeated his feat of smashing a fifty in the Powerplay for MI, leaving the RCB bowlers with no answers.
Although Akash Deep managed to dismiss him at 69, his innings, adorned with 7 boundaries and 5 maximums, had already done the damage, laying the foundation for a comfortable Mumbai win.
Suryakumar Yadav
Ishan's rapid knock was just the opening act for a Mumbai masterclass. SKY took centre stage after Ishan's exit, transforming the chase into a one-sided demolition.
Back in only his second game after injury, SKY walked in with a century stand on the board and wasted no time in dismantling RCB's bowling attack.
Akash Deep was his first victim, hammered for 24 runs in a single over. His arsenal was on full display -- delicate flicks of the wrist, a disdainful six over point, and his trademark lap shot across the crease leaving the bowlers bewildered.
Topley wasn't spared either, facing a flurry of boundaries -- three fours and a six. This onslaught propelled SKY to a record-breaking fifty off just 17 balls, the fastest of the tournament for him and the second-fastest overall.
RCB's misery was compounded by a dropped catch from Maxwell, who gifted SKY a life when he was on 15. Seizing the opportunity, SKY unleashed a flurry of fours and sixes. He raced to his fastest T20 fifty with a sequence of boundaries off Topley, before finally being dismissed in the next over. His quickfire 52 from just 19 balls included 5 fours and 4 sixes.
Faf du Plessis
Faf exhibited his exceptional form by dominating the Mumbai bowlers with an array of powerful strokes at the Wankhede stadium.
His scintillating 61 runs off just 40 deliveries, embellished with 4 boundaries and 3 towering sixes, showcased his trademark aggression and set the stage for RCB's formidable 196 runs by the close of the innings.
Du Plessis displayed a masterful approach during the Powerplay, strategically positioning himself to the leg side of the ball and utilising his wrists to elegantly lift it over the infield, effectively contributing crucial runs to his team's cause.
Rajat Patidar
Coming in at a precarious 23-2, Patidar injected much-needed momentum into the RCB innings.
He started aggressively, even surpassing his experienced partner du Plessis in the race for a fifty. Patidar reached the milestone in style, smashing back-to-back sixes off Gerald Coetzee. However, his knock was cut short on the very next ball, as Coetzee managed a crucial comeback dismissal.
Patidar's 26-ball 50, including two sixes, revived RCB's innings after a shaky start.
The rest of the RCB batting faltered, with only Dinesh Karthik managing double digits alongside du Plessis.
Dinesh Karthik
While others faltered, the stage was set for Dinesh Karthik's late heroics.
Entering at a crucial juncture (13th over), DK started cautiously, scoring just six runs from his first nine balls. However, the 16th over was a turning point. He unleashed his signature ramp shot against Akash Madhwal, collecting four boundaries in a single over.
Karthik, who boasts a history with MI, ignited the Wankhede crowd as they chanted his name following his exquisite shot selection against Jasprit Bumrah's slower ball, elegantly dispatching it over extra cover for six.
In the final over, he continued his assault, adding another four and a pair of sixes off Madhwal, taking 19 runs from the over.
Karthik's unbeaten 53 off 23 balls was a masterclass in finishing. It not only propelled RCB to 196 but also exposed the easing batting conditions with the arrival of dew.
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