MI vs RCB Highlights: Suryakumar Blistering Knock Help MI Jump To Third Spot

MI vs RCB Highlights: Suryakumar Yadav and Nehal Wadhera's superbly calculated attack overshadowed Royal Challengers Bangalore's Glenn Maxwell and Faf du Plessis' brilliant batting display at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday to aid the Mumbai Indians to a six-wicket victory.

In pursuit of a target of 200, Yadav scored 83 runs off 35 deliveries (7x4 6x6) at a strike rate of 237.14 to earn the award for Player of the Match. When he finally fell attempting his seventh six, Michigan needed only eight runs off of twenty-six balls to win. Surya and Wadhera's (52* off 34 deliveries) third-wicket partnership was worth 140 off 66 balls and took the match away from RCB at a rapid rate. With 12 points and their sixth victory, MI moved up to third place in the standings.

After Ishan Kishan gave them a rousing start with 42 off 21 balls, Yadav and Wadhera kept the equation in check with a shrewd display of batting, choosing their gaps well before shifting gears to find the boundaries. When they came together at 52/2, they helped MI reach 99/2 in 10 overs. The veteran cricketer reached his fifty in 26 deliveries after shifting into high gear. The partnership century was reached in 53 deliveries, bringing the total to 150 in 13.3 overs.

When MI began their pursuit, however, all eyes were on Rohit Sharma. On Saturday, after dropping to No. 3 against Chennai Super Kings, the MI captain, who had scored only five runs in his previous four IPL innings, returned to the top of the order. However, he had another forgettable performance, succumbing for 7 after being leg before trapped by spinner Wanindu Hasaranga.

The Maxwell-Faf show

Maxwell and du Plessis demonstrated why they are regarded as two of the most destructive batsmen in T20 cricket during RCB's innings. Maxwell scored 68 off 33 balls with eight fours and four sixes (strike rate: 206.06) and du Plessis scored 65 off 41 balls with five fours and three sixes (strike rate: 158.53) to propel RCB to a score of 199/6.

RCB had lost two wickets early on, they were facing MI's finest spinner, Piyush Chawla, and the onus was on them to set a target on a pitch in Mumbai where no total is secure enough. However, the two veteran IPL competitors were unfazed by the obstacles.

The home team squandered an opportunity by dropping Du Plessis to nought. The RCB opener swung erratically at a low full-toss from Jason Behrendorff, but Nehal Wadhera made a routine catch at short midwicket.

Behrendorff had given MI a dream start with two early wickets, including that of Virat Kohli, but once Maxwell and his captain joined forces at the beginning of the third over, the Mumbai bowlers came under heavy assault. Their partnership of 120 runs required only 62 deliveries. It was their fourth partnership of 100 or more runs this season. Maxwell expressed satisfaction with the score.

Maxwell stated, "Faf and I have had some wonderful partnerships, so it was a lot of fun." "I believe there were approximately 200 wickets, but there were a few deliveries that stayed low. You attempt to exploit the conditions as much as possible. Today, I was extremely dedicated and had an extremely optimistic mindset. I attempted to play the field and follow my intuition."

Chawla taken on remand

The highlight of their third wicket partnership was how they neutralized the threat posed by Piyush Chawla's leg-spin.

Chawla has been MI's most effective bowler this season; he allowed 41 runs without taking a wicket. In an effort to control the RCB top order, Rohit provided him with the new ball. However, he was unable to influence Maxwell and Du Plessis. Maxwell's square-of-the-wicket strokes threw off the RCB captain's timing, who was attempting to strike him down the ground. The most daring of the Australian's strokes was a reverse hit over cover for six off a leg-break bowled flatly.

Also See | 'He’s a match-winner': Brett Lee after Kolkata's win over PBKS

The impact they have on the RCB batting was evident in the manner in which MI fought back after their partnership was disrupted in the 13th over. Following Behrendorff's deception of Maxwell with a slower delivery, MI quickly took two more wickets. Kumar Karthikeya bowled an outstanding 14th over, allowing only five runs and dismissing Mahipal Lomror. The dismissal of Du Plessis off the first delivery of the 15th over by Cameron Green boosted the home side's chances. After 15 overs, the score was 152/5, down from 131/2 in 12 overs.

It prevented the opponents from capitalizing on the drag overs. The RCB scored 15 runs in the 18th over off left-arm spinner Kumar Karthikeya, with Dinesh Karthik striking two fours and one six. Prior to the 12th over, the RCB averaged nearly 11 runs per over, but in their final seven overs, they were only able to score 10 or more runs once.