Mumbai: Mumbai Indians snapped Chennai Super Kings’s seven-match winning streak on Sunday with a crushing 60-run victory in a lop-sided Indian Premier League match here.
Electing to bat, Mumbai scored 139 for five with captain Rohit Sharma top-scoring with a 30-ball 39 not out and then shot out Chennai for just 79 in 15.2 overs at the Wankhede Stadium to halt the visiting team’s dream run in the tournament.
Pragyan Ojha (3/11) and Mitchell Johnson (3/27) shared six wickets among them while Lasith Malinga grabbed two wickets for just six runs.
Harbhajan Singh and IPL debutant Pawan Suyal chipped in with a wicket each to help Mumbai put the brakes on the Chennai juggernaut in IPL 6.
Chennai’s 79 all out turned out to be the lowest total posted by them in the IPL, their previous lowest being 109 against Rajasthan Royals in 2008 in Jaipur.
This was also the lowest total by any team this IPL season, beating Delhi Daredevils’ 80 all out against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Saturday.
This loss was also the heaviest defeat for Chennai in the IPL in terms of runs.
Until this match, Chennai looked the most formidable and consistent team but they were never in the run chase as they suffered a top-order batting collapse with half their side in dressing room for just 34 runs in the seventh over.
They would have been in an even worse situation had the normally brilliant Mumbai fielder Kieron Pollard not dropped Chennai opener Michael Hussey (22) thrice in three successive balls in the first over of the innings bowled by Mitchell Johnson.
Pollard later took catches of Suresh Raina (0) and Chennai captain MS Dhoni (10) but again dropped Ravindra Jadeja (2) though it was a difficult one.
Despite the loss, their third in 12 matches, Chennai still lead the table with 18 points while Mumbai jumped to third place with 14 points from 11 games.
With the win, Mumbai maintained their unbeaten run at home this season while Chennai lost their first away match this year.
Chennai Super Kings coach Stephen Fleming termed the massive defeat as a wake-up call before they proceed towards the business end of the tournament.
“Striving to get to 8-10 (victories) was what we aimed for. The nature of the competition is such that it has not been done before.
“There is a reason for that because getting up every day, performing well and being consistent is tough work.
“Today we were not just good enough to do that,” Fleming told reporters.
“Restricting them to 130-140 was a pretty good effort. With our batting line-up, it was more than a gettable target to chase. But we had a bad day in batting. If the players needed a wake-up call, then it certainly was one.”
Johnson, who rattled CSK top order with three wickets in an over, said that the big win has boosted their confidence for the business end of the tournament.
“It was a very important game for us coming today obviously coming after a loss, a very bad loss (against Hyderabad).
“With our win against Chennai who have been dominant will give us a lot of confidence going into our next phase of this tournament,” Johnson said.
“We want to try and win every game we can coming to the last part of the tournament.
“Obviously we haven’t had a successful away run but to to be able to win like that tonight, hopefully that will give everyone the boost and hopefully get through to the finals,” Johnson who was adjudged Man-of-the-Match, said.
The Aussie would have dismissed his compatriot Michael Hussey but for three consecutive dropped catches by Kieron Pollard.
“It was a little bit surprising. I guess the first one was probably a tougher one but two after that… Look it does happen in the game.
“I said before the game to Ricky Ponting , I hope Mike Hussey’s all luck is run out. Obviously it hadn’t. It is just one of those things.
“He has taken some unbelievable catches in his time tonight wasn’t his night with catches.
“We all stuck with him, we stuck behind him.
“We played some tough cricket but that is just the way, the game goes,” he said. (PTI)