SKY masterclass takes Mumbai Indians from eighth to third

Mumbai flexed their batting muscle to complete their third chase of 200 or more in IPL 2023, beating the Royal Challengers Bangalore by six wickets to pick up a huge win in the race for the playoffs. Suryakumar Yadav lit up the Wankhede stadium with an IPL career-high score of 83 from 35 deliveries, while Ishan Kishan and Nehal Wadhera chipped in with important contributions to help Mumbai cruise to Bangalore’s target of 200 in just 16.4 overs.

MI’s statement win helped Rohit Sharma’s side jump from eighth to third in the IPL standings, giving the five-time champions a great chance of finishing in the playoff positions.

The flat batting track at the Wankhede delivered another six-fest for the Mumbai crowd, but there was some swing early on for Jason Behrendorff, who picked up two early wickets. The left-armer had Kohli edging behind for 1 while Anuj Rawat skied one to Cameron Green, leaving RCB reeling at 16 for 2.

However, the two early wickets failed to dispirit Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell. The pair launched an immediate counter-attack, taking on a weakened MI bowling attack which was missing star pacer Jofra Archer. Maxwell and du Plessis added 120 runs in just 61 deliveries, toying with the Mumbai bowlers and spraying the ball to all parts of the ground. The duo creamed 31 runs off MI debutant Chris Jordan and attacked Piyush Chawla throughout his spell, taking RCB to 131 for 2 in 12 overs.

Maxwell’s wicket for 68, though, turned the game around as RCB failed to capitalize on their brilliant platform. The visitors managed just 59 runs in the final 42 deliveries of their innings as Mumbai pulled things back nicely against the under-manned middle order, restricting RCB to 199 for 6.

In reply, Ishan Kishan provided a turbocharged start to Mumbai’s innings. The left-hander tore into Mohammed Siraj and Josh Hazlewood, smashing eight boundaries within the first 4.3 overs to set the tone for the chase. Wanindu Hasaranga removed Kishan and Rohit Sharma in the fifth over to get RCB back in the contest, but Nehal Wadhera and Suryakumar Yadav put on a show through the middle to put MI on course for victory.

The pair took Mumbai to 99 for 2 at the halfway mark with some risk-free shots, finding the gaps and manipulating the field to perfection, before exploding into action to seal a dominant win. Suryakumar Yadav was at the heart of Mumbai’s clinical display and unravelled the full range of his 360-degree stroke play to floor RCB. The right-hander scored his fourth half-century in his last six IPL innings and finished with 83 off just 35 deliveries, helping Mumbai complete the tall chase of 200 with 21 balls to spare.