MI vs LSG Eliminator: Fifer From Madhwal Help Mumbai To Beat Lucknow In Eliminator

With nearly ten overs remaining in the second innings, a T20 match is infrequently decided. At Chepauk on Wednesday, the Mumbai Indians defeated the Lucknow Super Giants by 81 runs in the Eliminator.

Marcus Stoinis' dismissal for 40 in the 12th over was the final nail in Lucknow's coffin as they chased 183 for a spot in Qualifier 2. Reduced to 89/6, it was impossible to recover. Akash Madhwal, a 29-year-old pacer from Roorkee, Uttarakhand, participating in his first season and seventh game for the Mumbai Indians, stole the show with figures of 5/5 in 3.3 overs.

Madhwal concluded the proceedings with a joyful lunge after bowling Mohsin Khan with a lethal yorker and dismissing Lucknow in 16.3 overs. As a result of their resounding victory, Mumbai will face Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 2 on Friday in Ahmedabad. On Sunday, the victor will face Chennai Super Kings in the final.

While Cameron Green led Mumbai with 41 runs, other batsmen contributed to the five-time champions' total of 182/8. The disparity between the two teams was evident in the fielding as Mumbai accomplished three crucial run outs.

The lone bright light for Lucknow was Naveen-ul-Haq, who garnered attention earlier in the season after a dispute with Virat Kohli. The Afghan sailor claimed 4/38 using a variety of ingenious variations. The fact that a portion of the audience chanted Kohli's name while he was operating seemed to fuel his desire to take wickets.

I elected to bat and, despite losing Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma, were exceedingly aggressive in the Powerplay, reaching 62/2 at a run rate of 10.33 despite losing both openers. LSG captain Krunal Pandya began with himself and off-spinner K Gowtham, anticipating that the pitch would aid spin immediately. Mumbai increased the burden on them. Kishan favored the off-side region square for each of his three fours. Sharma smashed Krunal for six over mid-on, followed by a sweep for four past short fine-leg.

After three overs, with Mumbai at 29/0, Krunal turned to his pacers and finding immediate success. His second delivery allowed Naveen to catch Sharma at cover. Yash Thakur induced Kishan to miscue a short delivery by bowling it.

These advancements did not prompt Green and Suryakumar Yadav to exercise restraint, however. Taking advantage of the width provided by Naveen, Green struck two fours off his first three deliveries. Suryakumar was similarly aggressive, executing his signature stride across the wickets to loft a short ball over the keeper for six on the fourth delivery he faced.

Three overs later, Suryakumar repeated that stroke. Green relied on brute strength. Their fifty-run partnership was achieved in just 28 deliveries, paving the way for MI to bat Lucknow out of the game.

If LSG was still in the game at that point, it was because of Naveen's strikes. In the eleventh over, he dismissed the set batters in three deliveries. Suryakumar was outwitted by a leg-cutter traveling at 107.3 kilometers per hour, with his misdirected drive traveling to Gowtham in the distance. Green's demise was precipitated by a 104.9 off-cutter that struck the stumps.

Tilak Varma slammed Ravi Bishnoi's leg-spin for six over mid-wicket in the twelfth over, but the team could only score 15 runs in the next three overs without a boundary. Varma eventually broke free of Naveen's shackles in the sixteenth over, relying once more on the sweep shot to score a much-needed maximum. But Naveen prevailed, as yet another slower ball in the 18th over ended the left-handed batter's at-bat.

Tim David succumbed without taking advantage of the slog overs. Nehal Wadhera, who came in at No. 7 as an impact player, was then tasked with ensuring a blistering end to MI's innings with a 12-ball 23.

Kyle Mayers, the batting reinforcement for Lucknow's second innings, began his response with three fours in Jason Behrendorff's first two overs. His stay was brief, however, as a back-of-a-length delivery from Chris Jordan struck the bat's splice and was caught by Green at mid-on. Stoinis and Krunal were tasked with leading Lucknow's counterattack after opener Prerak Mankad returned to the dugout.

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While the Australian performed admirably in attacking the MI bowlers, Krunal was unable to get moving. After unsuccessfully attempting to clear the boundary, the captain of Lucknow was captured by David at long on.

If that was undesirable from Lucknow's perspective, more suffering lay ahead. Madhwal dismissed Ayush Badoni and Pooran with consecutive deliveries in the tenth over. Pooran nicked a probing delivery outside off to the wicketkeeper, while Badoni was dismissed by a reckless sweep across the line.