Kolkata end their 12-year-wait for a win at Wankhede as listless Mumbai fail to get going
IPL 2024: KKR beat MI
Mumbai: Kolkata Knight Riders player Andre Russell with teammates celebrates the wicket of Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya during the IPL match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians, at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, Friday, May 3, 2024. (PTI Photo/Kunal Patil)
Synopsis: KKR had not beaten MI at the Wankhede Stadium since 2012, but that wait ended as a superb bowling display helped them defeat Hardik Pandya’s struggling side by 24 runs in a low-scoring contest.
DreRuss impact
Sure it was a free hit, but the 4th ball of the 14th over that took Suryakumar Yadav from 40 to 46 was perhaps a sign that Mumbai Indians still had hope – carving a sensational shot over point. By the time that Vaibhav Arora over came to an end, SKY had raced to 54 off 31 balls, chasing Kolkata’s 169.
Andre Russell didn’t have a night to remember with the bat. Despite the batting collapse, he was held back till the 17th over and he lasted just two deliveries. But, that’s the thing about being a top allrounder. With SKY looking dangerous, the West Indies star struck perhaps the most decisive blow on the night. A low full toss to a well-set Suryakumar could have easily gone the distance but the attempted pick up shot was caught by Phil Salt.
And a few overs earlier, he had also ended Hardik Pandya’s innings with one that stopped on him. Two big wickets that helped KKR end a 12-year wait for a win over MI at the Wankhede Stadium.
Along with Russell, Mitch Starc too had a night to remember on what has been a tough return to the IPL. When he was hit for a four and six by Ishan Kishan in the first over, Starc walked back to his mark with a shrug. The next ball, though, he cranked up the pace by a few kph and uprooted Ishan’s leg stump. He returned at the death to clean up the MI lower-order, picking up three wickets in the 19th over, including that of Tim David, also after getting hit for a six. The Aussie star registered 4/33 and perhaps let out the biggest roar we have seen from him so far this season.
India’s concerns
Before we get into Mumbai Indians woes, it was another forgettable night for India’s T20 World Cup captain and vice captain. Rohit Sharma started the season brightly, but his batting form has nosedived in the last few outings, scoring 29 runs in the last four innings. Sure the pitch wasn’t easy to bat on, but Rohit was far too tentative at the start of the chase when he could have tried to break the shackles to transfer pressure back on to KKR. But he fell trying to take on Sunil Narine.
IPL 2024: Rohit Sharma dismissal vs KKR
Sunil Narine of Kolkata Knight Riders and Shreyas Iyer (c) of Kolkata Knight Rider celebrates the wicket of Rohit Sharma of Mumbai Indians during match 51 of the Indian Premier League season 17 (IPL 2024) between Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders held at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on the 3rd May 2024. (Photo by Vipin Pawar / Sportzpics for IPL)
Coming lower down the order, Hardik Pandya lasted just 3 balls for 1 run, to follow up his duck in the last match in Lucknow. Indian fans will be hoping for better returns than what the Indians fans have been used to this season. “A lot of questions to answer, but right now not much to say,” said Hardik at the end. Indeed so.
Disastrous powerplays
Nuwan Thushara finished his night conceding 42 runs in 4 overs even when KKR managed to score at 8.52 runs per over for their 169 all out. But the sureshot way to prevent these high-flying batting units in this year’s IPL has been to take a wicket or two early in the powerplay. MI would know that best as they would later climb to the top of the table for most wickets lost in the first six overs, it’s been a big part of their struggles too.
Against KKR’s free-flowing openers, MI needed early wickets. Thushara struck in the first over to remove Phil Salt. In the third over, he accounted for Angkrish Raghuvanshi (who had looked dangerous during his brief stay) and KKR captain Shreyas Iyer, both finding the fielders inside the circle with unerring precision. He finished with 2-0-25-3 in the powerplay and pegged KKR back, but given their general aggressive intent, they got to 57/4.
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MI, though would go on to have a worse powerplay, finishing on 46/3 after losing Ishan, Naman Dhir and Rohit. That’s where the differences started. While MI couldn’t break the sixth-wicket partnership between Venkatesh Iyer and impact substitute Manish Pandey, KKR kept picking up wickets regularly. And it is here where MI’s tactics came into question as well.
While KKR kept the pressure in the middle overs with their best bowlers, MI didn’t give Bumrah a second over until the 14th of the innings, when Venkatesh and Manish steadied the ship. Shreyas later revealed that the Karnataka veteran has been waiting for an opportunity, and finally with the side in trouble, they decided to bring him as an Impact Player. That partnership proved useful in the end.
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