Dominating batting led by Sehwag seals Delhi win over Mumbai

New Delhi, Apr 28 : Skipper Virender Sehwag slammed an explosive 73 and shared a scintillating 135-run opening stand with Mahela Jayawardene (55) to lead Delhi Daredevils to a crushing 37-run win over Mumbai Indians in an Indian Premier League match, here today.

Delhi put on board a mammoth 207 for five after electing to bat and then restricted Mumbai to 170 for nine to become the only team in the current edition to have scored wins against the same rival both at home and away.

If Delhi out-bowled them in the first leg, the troika of Sehwag, Jayawardene and Pietersen out-batted them in this encounter to help the hosts continue their domination at the top with 12 points eight games.

Mumbai lost their batting mainstay Sachin Tendulkar (7) in the very third over off Morne Morkel’s bowling, offering an easy catch to mid-off.

Rohit Sharma (12) was out in the next over and it became a tall-order for MI batsmen although Ambati Rayudu (62 off 39) and Dinesh Karthik (40 off 28 balls) tried their best with a 95-run fourth wicket partnership.

Once Shahbaz Nadeem (2/35) removed Rayudu and Kieron Pollard (16) in the 16th over, the match was over as a contest.

The day however belonged to the trio of Sehwag, Jayawardene and Pietersen who pulverized MI bowlers with some real power-hitting.

Sehwag who hit eight fours and four sixes added 135 runs for the opening stand with Jayawardene (55 off 42 balls as Mumbai Indian bowlers were sent on a leatherhunt.

Pietersen smashed an unbeaten 50 off 26 balls (6x4, 3x6) towards the end to beef up the total.

KXIP look to make amends against CSK

Chennai, Apr 27: Kings XI Punjab would look to put behind the disappointment of their dismal performance against Mumbai Indians in the last game and make amends when they take on Chennai Super Kings in their Indian Premier League match, here today.

Punjab would be eager to forget their last match when they were thrashed by the Mumbai Indians as Ambati Rayudu (34) and Robin Peterson (16) creamed leg-spinner Piyush Chawla for 27 runs in the penultimate over to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

But it would be a difficult proposition for the low-on-confidence Punjab outfit to tame the ‘Men in Yellow’ in their own den.

Not just their last match, as it is, Kings XI team’s performance has been cause of worry.

Having lost five of their eight matches so far in the tournament, they are fully aware that they would have to play out of their skins if they intend to topple the hosts.

Their misery is compounded by the absence of skipper Adam Gilchrist, out with an hamstring injury, who is still a doubtful starter for tomorrow’s match.

But KXIP would be banking heavily on stand-in-skipper David Hussey, whose unbeaten 68-run knock in the last match helped Kings XI post a competitive total against Mumbai Indians.

Besides Hussey, another Australian Shaun Marsh has also been a amongst runs but the other batsmen require to take the centre stage in order to give some boost to Kings XI’s batting.

They would also be hoping for the bowlers, especially Chawla, to raise their game and deliver.

Resurgent RCB to take on KKR at Eden

Kolkata, April 27: A cracker of a contest is on the cards when a resurgent Royal Challengers Bangalore take on Kolkata Knight Riders in their return leg Indian Premier League fixture at Eden Gardens here tomorrow.

Both the teams’ last fixtures at their respective home grounds were washed out and they would pray that the weather God does not play spoilsport again tomorrow, even as the local Met department has forecast rain and thundershowers in next 48 hours.

The Bangalore outfit might have lost to KKR in the first leg but their campaign was back on track after three wins on the trot and both teams stay equal on league table with nine points from eight matches each at half-way stage of IPL 5.

One man KKR would need to watch out for would be Chris Gayle who has been in ominous form at the top of RCB batting and he would look to blow away the consistent Kolkata attack, something he had done in his last outing at the Eden, smashing a 55-ball 102 not out with seven sixes sent out of the park.

After a quiet start, Gayle has hit form with a 48-ball 81 studded with eight sixes in RCB’s win over Pune Warriors. He followed it up with another sizzling knock of 56-ball 87 in his side’s win over Kings XI Punjab.

Against his former franchise that chose not to retain him after the third season, the explosive Caribbean opener, who has recovered from an upset stomach, would look to prove a point. With A B de Villiers and Tillakaratne Dilshan in equally devastating form, the RCB batting would look to post or chase down a big total.

Skipper Daniel Vettori has recovered from a niggle that had forced him to sit out in their rain-marred last match against Chennai Super Kings.

One area of concern for RCB though was that their foreign recruits have been instrumental in the side’s wins and their domestic players like Virat Kohli, Saurabh Tiwary, Mayank Agarwal and Mohammad Kaif were yet to hit form.

White fires as Deccan pull off maiden win in IPL V

Pune, Apr 27: Cameron White scored a quickfire half century to help Deccan Chargers register their first win in the tournament, beating Pune Warriors by 18 runs in an Indian Premier League match here today.

White smashed a strokeful 78 off just 46 balls and together with JP Duminy (26 not out) added crucial 75 runs for the fifth wicket to power Deccan to 177 for four after electing to bat.

And then Deccan bowlers rose to the occasion for the first time in IPL season five as Pune lost wickets at regular intervals to be retstricted to 159 for seven at the Subrata Roy Sahara Stadium.

Debutant Ashish Reddy (2/32) and Rusty Theron (2/37) starred with the ball for Deccan, picking up two wickets apiece.

The victory is Deccan first win in this year’s IPL after five straight loses and a wash out game.

Pune’s run chase started on an awry note as they lost both their openers—Jesse Ryder and Manish Pandey—inside the 50-run mark.

While dangerous Ryder fell early with the scoreboard reading just 15, young Pandey showed some sparks in his 21-run knock before being bowled by Theron in his opening over at the team score of 43.

Pune captain Sourav Ganguly (23), who was dropped by Duminy at point in the first delivery of the 10th over by Manpreet Gony, failed to capitalise on the chance as fell three balls later, caught brilliantly by substitude fielder Daniel Harris at short cover.

Reddy then struck twice in the 14th over to derail Pune’s chase.Reddy first bowled Robin Uthappa as he went for a cheeky shot and then four balls later accounted for a struggling Marlon Samuels, caught by Deccan skipper Kumar Sangakkara.

Delhi ready to consolidate against an upbeat Mumbai

New Delhi, Apr 26: A thrilling victory against Kings XI Punjab in Mohali must have provided the much-needed boost to Mumbai Indians but hosts Delhi Daredevils still remain favourites when the two teams square off in a return-leg IPL match, here tomorrow.

With tournament reaching mid-way stage, Virender Sehwag’s men have looked most compact among the nine sides in the fray and the Daredevils will certainly like to consolidate their position as table toppers.

The last time the two teams locked horns at the Wankhede Stadium, Delhi pacers had steamrolled over the ‘Men in Blue’ but that was a match that didn’t feature Sachin Tendulkar.

Both teams had contrasting victories in their previous matches.

While Daredevils romped home courtesy a typical Sehwag innings against Pune Warriors, Mumbai Indians had to depend on Robin Peterson’s innovations and Piyush Chawla’s profligacy to get their campaign back on track.

Even as Tendulkar’s form in the two matches, since his comeback from finger injury, has been reassuring, Mumbai Indians’ bowling is still a cause of worry with no Lasith Malinga to bowl those menacing toe-crushers at the death.

Skipper Harbhajan Singh’s extended ‘wicket-drought’ has also affected the team very badly. The veteran of 98 Tests and 229 ODIs has managed only one wicket in seven games so far.

Worse, Harbhajan has been leaking runs regularly and has not contributed well with the bat.

The Daredevils, on the other hand, have been pretty consistent throughout.

Royal Challengers to face high-voltage encounter

Bangalore, Apr 24: An intense battle is on the cards as two in-form teams in start-studded Royal Challengers Bangalore and defending champions Chennai Super Kings lock horns in an important Indian Premier League encounter, here tomorrow.

Both RCB and CSK have hit form after a slow start to the tournament. While RCB has registered three back-to-back wins after a few defeats, CSK will riding high on confidence following victories over Pune Warriors India and Rajasthan Royals in their last two matches.

But tomorrow’s match at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium occupies special significance for RCB as they will be eyeing revenge following their lost to CSK in Chennai earlier this month.

And the hosts, who would be desperate after the last-over loss to CSK in the away match, have the ammunition to dismantle the visitors’ fort at home conditions.

RCB, who lost to CSK and Rajasthan Royals in a row, have improved a lot as the tournament progressed, winning three games on the trot and would be hoping to continue their unbeaten stretch.

RCB would be taking heart from the fact that they pulled off an easy win against Rajasthan Royals in their own backyard last night without much contributions from explosive Chris Gayle (4) and Virat Kohli (16).

To RCB’s delight, Tillakaratne Dilshan and A B de Villiers have regained their lost touch, which should sound warning bells in the opposition camps.

Dilshan returned to form in style, scoring a match-winning unbeaten 76 and together with AB de Villiers, who scored a quickfire unbeaten 59 off just 23 balls, shared an unconquered 122-run fourth wicket partnership to propel RCB to 189 for three against Rajasthan last night.

But Virat Kohli’s dismal form will be the only concern for RCB skipper Daniel Vettori ahead of the CSK tie.