New Delhi: Defending champions Mumbai Indians returned back to winning ways by getting the much-needed win over flamboyant Punjab Kings in a must-win match on Tuesday at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, courtesy fiery knocks from Hardik Pandya and Kieron Pollard who chased down the paltry 136-run target in 19 overs. However, a spirited bowling effort from Punjab Kings ensured that Mumbai batters fought hard for the win.
For Punjab, Ravi Bishnoi was the pick of bowlers as he picked two wickets in his four overs while Mohammad Shami and Nathan Ellis bagged one wicket each. This is Mumbai's fifth win in 11 matches and has now they move up to number five in IPL 2021 Points table. Punjab, today, were handed their seventh defeat in 11 matches.
After today's win, Mumbai Indians have finally broken their 3-match losing streak in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Earlier, sensational bowling spells from Jasprit Bumrah and Kieron Pollard helped Mumbai Indians restrict Punjab Kings to a paltry 135/6. Rohit Sharma won the toss and invited Delhi to bat first. Aiden Markram scored the maximum 42 runs for Punjab. Apart from him, Deepak Hooda scored 28, captain KL Rahul 21, Mandeep Singh 15 and Chris Gayle got out for just one run.
MI playing XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Saurabh Tiwary, Krunal Pandya, Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Rahul Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult
PBKS playing XI: KL Rahul (c & wk), Mandeep Singh, Chris Gayle, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Deepak Hooda, Harpreet Brar, Nathan Ellis, Mohammed Shami, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh