Mumbai eliminate Rajasthan from IPL playoff race with bruising win / Photo: © AFP
Mumbai eliminate Rajasthan from IPL playoff race with bruising win
Rohit Sharma shined with the bat and Karn Sharma spearheaded a fine collective bowling effort as Mumbai Indians cruised to a massive 100-run win over Rajasthan Royals on Thursday, officially ending their opponents' chances of reaching the playoffs.
Rohit smacked 53 runs of 36 balls as Mumbai posted 217-2 after being invited to bat first at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.
Indian pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah and spinner Karn then picked up a combined total of five wickets to help bowl out Rajasthan for 117 in 16.1 overs after teenage sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi fell to a two-ball duck.
The match extends Mumbai Indians winning streak to six games and pushes them to the top of the points table.
Mumbai skipper Hardik Pandya said the team were going back to "simple" cricket with clinical batting and bowling performances.
"As a group, the way we batted was proper batsmanship...," said Hardik. "Everyone is really clear. We're going back to simple cricket, and it's working for that. We want to take game by game, and be humble and disciplined."
Mumbai openers Rohit and Ryan Rickelton kicked off the first innings on a dominant note, producing a 116-run partnership before Rickelton, who hit 61 runs off 38 balls, departed in the 12th over.
Rohit fell shortly after, leaving the team at 123-2.
But the rest of the batting burden was shouldered ably by aggressive knocks from Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik.
Both players smacked an unbeaten 48 runs each, giving no quarter to Rajasthan's bowlers, with Yadav hitting a six off the very last ball to set Rajasthan a chase of 218.
In reply, Rajasthan started the on a wobbly note. Suryavanshi (0) was dismissed cheaply in the first over while Yashasvi Jaiswal (13) fell soon after, leaving the team at 20-2 at the end of the second over.
Unfortunately for the hosts, sharp spells from Mumbai's bowlers triggered a batting collapse.
Nitish Rana (9), skipper Riyan Parag (16), Shimron Hetmyer (0), Shubham Dubey (15) and Dhruv Jurel (11) fell like flies, leaving the team teetering at 76-7 at the end of the ninth over.
England's Jofra Archer offered a glimmer of hope, hitting 30 runs off 27 balls, but ultimately fell, leaving the Rajasthan Royals far short of their target.
Parag said that Mumbai Indians deserved credit "for the way they batted".
"Yeah, 190-200 would have been ideal. We've been getting good starts," he said. "But it's up to the middle order... to step up. I think we've done a lot of things right. And a lot of things wrong."
P.Barry--TNT
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