Punjab Kings rode on relentless strokeplay from opener Prabhsimran Singh and captain Shreyas Iyer to register an easy seven-wicket win at the Wankhede on Thursday, overshadowing Quinton de Kock’s unbeaten 112 in his first appearance of the season for Mumbai Indians.
The win takes the Kings, the only unbeaten team so far, atop the standings. Mumbai, who were extremely sloppy in the field, are in ninth spot.
De Kock’s third IPL ton and his 122-run third-wicket stand with Naman Dhir (50 off 31 balls) had propelled Mumbai to 195/6, after they were put into bat. During the run chase, Mumbai’s Impact Player AM Ghazanfar (in for Suryakumar Yadav) picked up both Priyansh Arya and Cooper Connolly in his first couple of overs, as the Kings’ scorecard read 45/2 in the fifth over.
The game was still in the balance. But the in-form Shreyas (66 off 35 balls) got off to yet another solid start before Prabhsimran (80 not out off 39 balls) upped the ante with his flurry of strokes, making matters easier for the Kings skipper.
The duo toyed with Mumbai’s bowling attack, hammering 139 for the third wicket in just 11 overs as the Kings eventually reached the target with 21 balls to spare. Prabhsimran’s consistency at the top could earn him bigger rewards going forward, while Shreyas, with a hat-trick of fifties, is strengthening his case for an India T20I comeback.
However, like the Mumbai Indians, the Kings too had a reprieve coming to their rescue. Early in the fifth over, Yuzvendra Chahal, having a bad day with the ball, dropped a sitter at short fine-leg to let Dhir off. Thereafter, in the fourth over of the Kings’ reply, Prabhsimran was dropped at short third man on 11, by Jasprit Bumrah off Mumbai captain Hardik Pandya’s bowling.
Bumrah shelling that easy take certainly hit Mumbai harder. Shreyas, too, enjoyed a reprieve later as his shot went through Dhir’s fingers for a six. It didn’t matter much, though, as the Kings had practically wrapped up the game by then.
What also made De Kock’s century go in vain was the lack of penetration in Mumbai’s bowling. Barring Bumrah and to an extent Afghan spinner Ghazanfar, the others looked pedestrian.
They also missed former captain Rohit Sharma’s experience on the field. The injured Rohit is set to miss at least two more games.
Arshdeep’s accuracy
Alongside Shreyas’ breathtaking effort at the long-off region that led to Hardik’s dismissal at a crucial stage of the game, what also ensured the Kings didn’t have to chase a 200-plus total was Man of the Match Arshdeep Singh’s bowling. Apart from his double strike in the Powerplay to get rid of Ryan Rickelton and Surya, the left-arm quick was at his accurate best in the slog overs too.
He got his yorkers spot-on, which earned him the wicket of Sherfane Rutherford in the 19th over. Bowling 13 dot balls, Arshdeep gave away only three boundaries. Not having a good time in the previous matches, Arshdeep ensured to quickly buck up.
