Mumbai Indians became the first team to win four Indian Premier League (IPL) titles after they beat Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by one run in a rip-roaring final at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium here on Sunday.
Chasing 150 for victory, Chennai managed 149/8 in 20 overs.
Brief scores: Mumbai Indians: 149/8 in 20 overs (Kieron Pollard 41 not out, Quinton de Kock 29; Deepak Chahar 3/26, Imran Tahir 2/23) vs Chennai Super Kings: 148/7 in 20 overs (Shane Watson 80, Jasprit Bumrah 2/14)
Mumbai Indians (MI) skipper Rohit Sharma was upset with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) seamer Shardul Thakur’s behaviour in the final of the Indian Premier League (IPL) here on Sunday.
Thakur gave Quinton de Kock quite a send-off after removing him for a 17-ball 29, which did not go down well with Sharma. The MI skipper could be seen walking over to the umpire to have a word.
Umpire Ian Gould then came up to Shardul and had a word with him.
After Rohit opted to bat first, de Kock gave MI a brisk start as he hit Thakur for a six in the second over before smashing Deepak Chahar for three sixes in the third over.
When Thakur returned in the fifth over, de Kock again hit him for a six in the fourth delivery. However, Thakur had his revenge in the very next ball, forcing an edge off de Kock’s bat that was easily taken by skipper M.S. Dhoni behind the stumps. Thakur then gave de Kock a send-off, as the crowd roared in the stands. Deepak Chahar (3/26) and Imran Tahir (2/23) starred with the ball as Chennai Super Kings (CSK) restricted Mumbai Indians (MI) to 149/8 in 20 overs in the final of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium here on Sunday, even as Kieron Pollard hit an unbeaten cameo (41* off 25) down the order.
Pollard, who was dropped on 25 by Suresh Raina, was the top-scorer for Mumbai as he hammered three fours and three sixes. For Chennai, Sahardul Thakur also picked up two wickets for 23 runs.
But Pollard hogged the limelight for the wrong reasons in the last over when as a mark of protest against the umpire not calling a wide in the previous delivery, he walked across — even leaving the pitch — to face the fourth ball before Dwayne Bravo pulled out.
Opting to bat, Mumbai openers Quinton de Kock (29 off 17) and Rohit Sharma (15 off 14) started cautiously, scoring just two runs in the first over. The duo, however, swiftly changed gears as de Kock clobbered Deepak Chahar for 20 runs in the third over and kept playing aggressively as Mumbai raced to 45 for no loss in 4.4 overs.
Shardul finally drew the first blood as he packed back a dangerous looking de KOck in the very next ball. Three balls later, Deepak Chahar struck to send back Rohit. A slower delivery from the pacer did the trick as a thick edge off Rohit’s bat was taken easily by M.S. Dhoni behind the stumps.
Suryakumar Yadav (15 off 17) and Ishan Kishan (23 off 26) then tried to repair the damage, adding 37 runs for the third wicket in the next six overs. But leg-spinner Imran Tahir struck to dismiss Suryakumar in the 12th over before Shardul also joined the party, dismissing new batsman Krunal Pandya (7 off 7) cheaply, which saw Mumbai reeling at 89/4.
Just when Mumbai touched the three-digit mark, Tahir struck again as he accounted for the wicket of Kishan in the 15th over. Pollard and Hardik Pandya then shared a 39-run partnership in quick time as the former’s lusty blows propelled his side towards a modest total. However, while trying to accelerate the run-rate, Pandya became a victim of Deepak Chahar in the second last over.
Just a ball later, Deepak Chahar dismissed his brother Rahul Chahar, who didn’t bother the scorers. From there Pollard could manage to add just nine runs to Mumbai’s total, as his side somehow managed to post a fighting total.
Brief scores: Mumbai Indians: 149/8 in 20 overs (Kieron Pollard 41 not out, Quinton de Kock 29; Deepak Chahar 3/26, Imran Tahir 2/23) vs Chennai Super Kings.
Imran Tahir became the highest wicket-taker in this season’s Indian Premier League during the final between Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians, here on Sunday.
South African leg-spinner Tahir surpassed compatriot Kagiso Rabada with 26 wickets to his name. The 40-year-old removed Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan to dent Mumbai’s charge after the CSK was asked to bowl first by MI skipper Rohit Sharma.
Tahir has been in superb form this season and along with captain MS Dhoni, is one of the main reasons for the team’s success.