IPL 2021: Saurabh Tiwary and Hardik Pandya take Mumbai Indians home in a must-win match against Punjab Kings

Defending champions Mumbai Indians finally get off the mark in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). After losing their last three matches, on a trot, the Rohit Sharma-led side outclasses Punjab Kings in a must-win match by six wickets to keep their playoff hopes alive. Saurabh Tiwary and Hardik Pandya put up a class batting performance at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi to take MI home.

However, it was again a sorry night for Punjab Kings. Put to bat first, the KL Rahul-led side were underwhelming in the first innings. The team lost their first four wickets early as Mumbai produced a disciplined bowling performance. PBKS soon found themselves reeling at 48 for four but Aiden Markram and Deepak Hooda stitched a good partnership in the middle.

The two together took the team to 109 runs in 16 overs. However, there was again a collapse of Punjab’s lower middle-order towards the end. Thus, the team ended up with just 135 runs on the scoreboard in their 20 overs. The crest for the same completely goes to MI’s batting unit as they hardly gave anything away.

Mumbai Indians reach the fifth position on the points table

136 was too low of a total to defend in Abu Dhabi but the Punjab bowlers gave it their all to make the match a thrilling affair. The Kings were absolutely brilliant with the ball as they were successful in bringing the equation down to 40 runs off four overs. Mumbai found a new hero in the form of Saurabh Tiwary.

As MI kept losing their wickets, Tiwary kept his calm at one end and played a match-defining knock of 45 runs off 37 deliveries. Meanwhile, it was Hardik Pandya who made the most headlines owing to his conduct with the willow.

Pandya took the remand of the PBKS bowlers in the death overs as he hit 40 runs off 30 deliveries to take MI home by six wickets. The victory is extremely crucial for Mumbai as it has given them two crucial points to reduce the gap between them and a playoff berth. Punjab, on the other hand, have made things difficult for them.

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