Delhi Daredevils' bowling line-up fired in unison to fashion team's crushing seven-wicket win over Mumbai Indians in an Indian Premier League match on Monday.
Everything fell in place perfectly for Delhi, right from winning the toss, as they bundled out the hosts for a paltry 92, the lowest team total of the current edition, and then overhauled the target by losing just three wickets with 5.1 overs to spare.
Chasing a meagre total, skipper Virender Sehwag top scored for Delhi with a patient 32 off 36 balls while Mahela Jayawardene remained unbeaten on 17 in company of Kiwi batsman Ross Taylor (11).
Taking full advantage of the Mumbai batsmen's rash display with the bat, the Delhi bowlers attacked from the first over to reduce the hosts to a sorry-reading 44 for six by the 12th over to make it a virtual no-contest at Wankhede Stadium track, offering good bounce.
Host skipper Harbhajan Singh made a counter-attacking 33 off 22 balls, with five fours and a six, after Rohit Sharma prospered a bit while making a chancy 29 off 27 balls with five fours, but the rest of the batsmen self-destructed.
The below-par score was Mumbai's second-lowest aggregate in five seasons of IPL, slightly better than the 87 they made against Kings XI Punjab last year, and the first sub-100 score by any team this season.
The wickets were shared by the five Delhi bowlers - Shahbaz Nadeem taking two wickets in his first two overs to start the slump, which was later feasted on by Morne Morkel (2/22), Ajit Agarkar (2/27), Umesh Yadav (2/11) and Irfan Pathan (1/12).
Openers Sehwag and Naman Ojha started the run-chase on a sound note by putting on 34 before the latter became the first of two victims of left arm pacer Rudra Pratap Singh, also getting his first chance to play this season.
RP Singh dismissed Ojha, after the batsman had struck two fours off Clint Mackay for two successive fours, as a mistimed pull ended his innings. He also got rid off Kevin Petersen to finish with 2 for 22.
Sehwag was lucky when on 16 in a team score of 45 for 1 to be let off by third man Levi off a slash that he played against Singh. He put his team well on path to victory though he was not there to score winning runs.
When Mumbai batted, they got off to a shock start by losing both their South African openers with only five runs on the board. Jacobs tried a cross-batted heave against left-arm spinner Nadeem and was bowled comprehensively for a duck in the second over.
His compatriot Levi too did not prosper much and was also guilty of trying an audacious pull off Nadeem and under-edged the ball on to the stumps to leave Mumbai reeling in the fourth over after being sent in to bat.
Rohit Sharma tried to attack from the first ball and played a couple of glorious lofted off drives but was also lucky that three other ambitious shots were top-edged to the boundary, two of those off Morne Morkel.
Even as Rohit was settling down he saw the backs of Ambati Rayudu (4), out to a very poorly judged and attempted single, and key batsman Kieron Pollard.
Rayudu scampered for a non-existent run after being struck on the pads by Ajit Agarkar who was given his first match of the season. Partner Rohit never budged from the non-striker's spot. The batsman was so far down the pitch that even a misdirected throw by fielder Yogesh Nagar could not help him regain the crease.
Tottering at 30 for 3, things became worse when Pollard was caught trying to cart Umesh Yadav out of the ground and getting a leading edge for the catch to drop into the waiting hands of Ross Taylor. The Kiwi then caught Rohit off Agarkar in the next over to leave Mumbai at 41 for five.
Dinesh Karthik too played poorly as his attempted pull off Yadav resulted in a dolly catch to mid on fielder Kevin Petersen as the ball hurried on to the batsman and at 44 for 6 in the 11th over, Mumbai's tail was exposed.
Skipper Harbhajan Singh used the long handle to good effect by slamming Agarkar for two fours and a six in the 12th over that yielded 17 runs to help Mumbai pass the 50 mark.
But for the Mumbai captain and his stand of 34 runs with McKay, who was playing his first game of IPL5, the total would have been even more pathetic.
