Mumbai dent Hyderabad’s playoff push
Suryakumar Yadav hit an unbeaten 102 to lead Mumbai Indians to a crushing seven-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad as teams jostle for a playoff berth in the IPL.
Chasing 174 for victory, Mumbai slipped to 31-3 before Suryakumar and Tilak Varma put on an unbeaten stand of 143 to achieve the target with 16 balls to spare at their home Wankhede Stadium.
Suryakumar hit the winning six, raising his second IPL ton in 51 balls. This is a welcome sign for India ahead of June’s T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the US.
“SKY was unbelievable,” skipper Hardik Pandya said of his player of the match.
“More than getting runs, he puts so much pressure on bowlers that even other batters get loose balls. He breaks you. I’m lucky to have him on my team.”
However, the win for five-time winners Mumbai, placed ninth in the 10-team table, could be late in a tournament fast moving toward its business end.
Sunrisers Hyderabad, led by Pat Cummins, stay fourth in the table, but their fifth loss and a big one could hurt their playoff chances.
Hyderabad need to win two of their remaining three matches to make the play-offs. They remain locked at 12 points with third-placed Chennai Super Kings and Lucknow Super Giants in fifth.
The top four teams will make the playoffs, and the final will be on May 26 in Chennai.
Hyderabad, who have posted record IPL totals of 277 and 287 this season, will next host Lucknow. Cummins said, “We like playing at home. We’ve done well there so far. I’m looking forward to what’s ahead of us. Hopefully, a few more fireworks.”
Former champions Hyderabad posted 173-8 courtesy of Travis Head’s 48 and an unbeaten 17-ball 35 by lower-order batter Cummins after being invited to bat first.
The left-handed Head gave the team a brisk start with his 30-ball knock before his departure in the 11th over and Hyderabad lost their way with regular wickets.
Pandya and spinner Piyush Chawla took three wickets each to rattle the opposition middle and lower order as Hyderabad slipped to 136-8 in 17 overs.
But number nine Cummins had other ideas as the Australian Test and ODI captain hit back in the final three overs and put on an unbeaten stand of 37 off 19 balls with Sanvir Singh.
The batting effort inspired the team, and fast bowlers roared to reduce Mumbai to 31-3, including the key wicket of Rohit Sharma, who was out caught behind for four off Cummins.
Suryakumar soon took charge of his attacking batting, raising his 50 in 30 balls and hammering the opposition bowling with 12 fours and six sixes.
The left-handed Varma made 37 and enjoyed Suryakumar’s blitz from the other end.