IPL 10, Match 22, Kings XI Punjab v Mumbai Indians: 5 Tracking Points

Just when it looked like Punjab had done enough to threaten the opponents after some 198 runs, Mumbai Indians came back and chased the total down with 27 balls and 8 wickets to spare. While Punjab’s batting display was beautiful, Mumbai’s was brutal. Jos Buttler was Mumbai’s reply to Punjab’s Hashim Amla, and it looked like the brutal assault on Mumbai in the powerplay was a carnage, but the carnage never stopped, not until the Mumbai Indians registered one more win and won their match.

A target of almost 200 and Mumbai do it with still time, balls and wickets to spare. The conditions were pretty favourable for batting as you can probably tell by the target and the even more effortless chase that followed. 198 was a good score, but will you ever be able to tell, in a T20 game that a certain target is enough?

A Hashim Amla Special

It was a special performance from Kings XI Punjab opener Hashim Amla as he scored his first century in the IPL against Mumbai Indians at the Holkar Stadium in Indore on Thursday. Amla’s maiden IPL century was dotted with eight fours and six sixes. It was the second century of IPL 2017, Sanju Samson having hit the first one some days ago while his 83-run partnership with Glenn Maxwell (40) proved to be crucial for KXIP to reach 198/4 in 20 overs.

Though it ended up in the losing cause, he was the first one to make Indore’s last match of this IPL a night to remember. Moreover, he has shut down critics who have questioned his ability in the T20 format, and his overseas spot in the Kings XI Punjab, for a long time. Initially supported by Shaun Marsh and then Maxwell, Hashim Amla remained unbeaten as he gave bowlers like McCleneghan and Malinga a hard time.

Jos Buttler has arrived

Buttler’s annihilation negated Amla’s effort in the previous innings. Buttler’s brutal knock meant that Hashim Amla’s maiden IPL century for Kings XI Punjab went in vain. Buttler was involved in an 85-run second wicket stand with Nitish Rana. Buttler’s 37-ball 77 was studded with five sixes and seven fours. There were questions about him too because, until today, he was able to get starts only to be dismissed without converting them. Should Rohit be opening instead? Should Buttler go down the order again? The questions have now been answered by Buttler himself.

Chasing a mammoth total, Mumbai Indians needed a good start and Buttler was well up to the task, and Buttler along with Parthiv Patel provided the side with just what they needed. The powerplay was exploited and by the end of it, Kings XI already had the game slipping out of their hands. Mumbai Indians will now be hoping that this arrival also marks the arrival of their most destructive batsman for the rest of the season as well.

Nitish Rana personifies consistency yet again

The Mumbai Indians batting order has seen some drastic shuffling in their batting order this year, and due to that, a revelation has been made. Nitish Rana has been batting at No. 3 in IPL, and just have a look at his scores at that position to understand how much that move has paid off: 70, 50, 53, 54*. * Rana has made a name for himself in this IPL due to his consistent performances with the bat for the Mumbai Indians and the man’s confidence was on the show yet again.

Tonight, he hit the most sixes (7) in an IPL innings without a four during his 62* off 34. After a long time, Mumbai has found itself doing extremely well during the start of the season and it’s safe to say that Rana has been a major factor in that. Today too, Rana stayed till the end and made sure that he played a pivotal role in the franchise’s success again as he is back to leading run-scorers’ chart and reclaimed the Orange Cap.

When did Holkar Stadium turn into a nightmare for the bowlers?

As the run fest today comes to an end, let’s spare a thought for the bowlers who have definitely bagged some unwanted stats against their names. The economy rate of the bowlers touched around 14.50, so that speaks volumes about how the bowlers had to face the horror of the bat’s dominance. Chinnaswamy was known for doing that to bowlers, but the bowlers will be thankful that it isn’t the same anymore and it was the last match at Indore this year.

Hashim Amla scored 51 runs off 16 against Lasith Malinga, which is the most by a batsman against him in IPL. Ishant Sharma too, unsurprisingly, was hit for about 58 runs in his 4 overs, the same as Malinga. Mitchell McClenaghan too would like to forget his third over of this match as he recorded the second most expensive over in IPL 2017. Maxwell scored 28 runs off the 15th over which proved to be the second biggest over after Ashok Dinda’s 30 runs against Mumbai Indians.

Mumbai Indians sit pretty on the table

Mumbai moves to the top with their net run-rate getting quite a boost after today. It may have been an unfamiliar territory during the start of the season for a long time but the Mumbai Indians have changed that this year. The stay might perhaps be short-lived if KKR wins the match tomorrow but Mumbai Indians and the Kolkata Knight Riders are the only two sides competing for the first spot of the table.

This win makes it Mumbai Indians’ fifth on the trot, while this was Punjab’s fourth on the trot, in the losing cause. This win now has Mumbai sitting pretty on top of the table, while Punjab is reeling at No. 6. The only confidence they can take from that is their run rate is the best compared to the three other teams that follow it.