Chennai are the Super Kings of IPL-4

Chennai: MS Dhoni's love affair with silverware continued as he led the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to successful defence of their IPL title with a comprehensive 58-run victory over the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the final at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Saturday.

A mammoth total of 205 was complemented by a three-wicket spell (3/16) from R Ashwin that paved way for Chennai's title defence, which began with a 159-run opening partnership between 'Man of the Match' Murali Vijay (95) and Michael Hussey (63).

Chennai bowlers then restricted Bangalore to a paltry 147/8 and romped home by the big margin. It was an icing on the cake for CSK skipper Dhoni after the historic World Cup triumph last month.

Chasing 206 to win, Ashwin delivered a body blow to RCB's title aspirations when he got the big fish Chris Gayle for a naught in the first over. MS Dhoni's move to open the attack with the off-spinner struck more gold as he followed Gayle's wicket with Mayank Aggarwal's in his second over to put the CSK right on top.

Ashwin first induced an edge from Gayle, which was pouched by MS Dhoni, and then bowled Aggarwal (10).

Virat Kohli then instilled some hopes with a few lusty blows but AB de Villiers misread Shadab Jakati to be caught right in front. He became the third Bangalore wicket to fall inside seven overs as the scoreboard read 48/3.

Jakati then added another wicket to his tally when he lapped up a top edge from Luke Pomersbach to leave the RCB innings in complete disarray.

Another body blow was delivered by part-timer Suresh Raina when he put the final nail in RCB's coffin by taking out Kohli, who scored 35 off 32 balls before getting out lbw.

Regular fall of wickets sent half the RCB side back in the dug-out after 10 overs, making it the most lopsided of the four IPL finals so far. Shadab Jakati (2/21) bowled well in tandem with Ashwin to pick up his two wickets.

Earlier, Vijay and Hussey hit sparkling half centuries en route to a 159-run opening stand that laid the foundation for CSK's mammoth total of 205/5.

Hussey and Vijay gave Chennai a quick start and mixed caution with aggression after Dhoni decided to bat first. The duo didn't go on an all out attack and kept the scoreboard ticking with cheeky singles, while hitting a six each in the first four overs.

Another six from Vijay off Gayle brought up CSK's fifty in just 5.1 overs to stamp their early domination in the game as they picked 56 runs in the six overs of powerplay.

After the rollicking start, the openers didn't hold themselves back and intensified the assault, which saw the CSK hundred being raised in just 10.3 overs after Vijay's punishing 29-ball half century.

Vijay upped the ante from that point on, hitting fours and sixes almost at will. On the other end, experienced Hussey fed the strike to Vijay, picking an occasional boundary as he reached his fifty in 40 balls.

Wicket finally came for Bangalore when Hussey tried to loft Syed Mohammad over long-on for another six but ended up in the hands of Abhimanyu Mithun. That brought an end to a 159-run opening partnership in just 14.5 overs.

Dhoni (22 off 13) then lit up Chepauk with his two sixes but he and Vijay fell to S Aravind in consecutive deliveries.

Vijay (95), who deserved a century, fell just five runs short while Dhoni departed in quest of quick runs. Vijay stroked four boundaries and six towering sixes in his 52-ball knock.

RCB bowlers made some sort of a comeback towards the end by picking up two more wickets in the last two overs. It was Dwayne Bravo who hit six off the final delivery to help CSK cross 205.

For RCB, Aravind and Gayle picked two wickets apiece while Syed picked one.

Harbhajan hits last-over six in Mumbai win

Australian batsman Aiden Blizzard struck a brisk half-century and Harbhajan Singh cracked a last-over six as Mumbai Indians posted a four-wicket victory over Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League on Wednesday.

Mumbai were strongly placed following an 81-run stand for the opening wicket between Blizzard (51) and skipper Sachin Tendulkar (36) before losing their way.

Blizzard, who hit two sixes and seven fours in his 30-ball knock, reached his half-century with a six off countryman Brett Lee before being caught in the deep while attempting another big shot off the next delivery.

Mumbai needed seven runs in the final over to achieve a 148-run target, with New Zealander James Franklin taking a single off the first ball from Bangladesh spinner Shakib Al Hasan, before Harbhajan smashed the next for a six.

Franklin made an unbeaten 29 off 25 balls, while Harbhajan contributed a five-ball 11 not out.

Mumbai will now clash with Royal Challengers Bangalore on Friday, the winners of their match will meet Chennai Super Kings in the final. Kolkata bowed out of the Twenty20 tournament with the high-pressure loss.

Munaf Patel earlier played a key role in restricting Kolkata despite an impressive 70 not out by Netherlands' Ryan ten Doeschate as he took two wickets in his opening two overs, including that of South African Jacques Kallis.

Kolkata were struggling at 4-20 in the opening six overs after being put in to bat before ten Doeschate led the recovery with a 60-run stand for the fifth wicket with Yusuf Pathan (26).

Ten Doeschate, who cracked three sixes and six fours in his 49-ball knock, then added 41 for the sixth wicket with Shakib (26) to help his team post a competitive total.

Paceman Patel struck with his fourth delivery when he had Kallis (7) caught by Tendulkar, who took a superb low catch at mid-off. He got another wicket in his next over when he removed Shreevats Goswani.

Harbhajan got a big wicket when he bowled skipper Gautam Gambhir (4) before seamer Dhawal Kulkarni trapped Manoj Tiwary lbw to put Kolkata under pressure.

Raina, Morkel power Chennai into IPL final

MUMBAI, May 24- Suresh Raina and Albie Morkel powered holders Chennai Super Kings into the Indian Premier League final after a six-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bangalore on Tuesday.

Chasing 176, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his men looked in trouble after losing both openers inside the first nine deliveries but Raina (73 not out) laid the platform and Morkel (28 not out) hit three sixes when it mattered most to guide Chennai home with two balls to spare.

Raina hit six sixes while battling cramps and Morkel made the most of the 10 deliveries he faced to help Chennai score the 32 runs they needed off the last two overs to book a place in Saturday's final.

Bangalore can still make it to the final, provided they win Friday's playoff against either Mumbai Indians or Kolkata Knight Riders.

Put into bat, Bangalore lost in-form opener Chris Gayle for just eight but Virat Kohli (70 not out), Mayank Agarwal (34) and Luke Pomersbach (29) helped set a useful target in front of a sparse Wankhede Stadium crowd.

Pakistan scent victory over West Indies

BASSETERRE, Saint Kitts and Nevis (AFP) - Hundreds from Taufeeq Umar and Misbah-ul-Haq followed by purposeful bowling led by Abdur Rehman had Pakistan on the verge of victory over West Indies in the second Test on Monday.

Rehman captured three for 26 from 14 overs, as West Indies, in pursuit of 427 for victory, slumped to 130 for six in their second innings at stumps on the fourth day at Warner Park.

Left-hander Darren Bravo has been the only West Indies batsman that has come to terms with the Pakistani bowlers, hitting the top score so far of 50.

Taufeeq had equalled his career-best of 135 and Misbah, the Pakistan captain, was undefeated on 102, as the visitors reached 377 for six in their second innings before they declared about 45 minutes after lunch.

Taufeeq struck 13 fours from 315 balls in close to seven hours batting, and Misbah stroked 10 fours and two sixes from 141 deliveries in close to four hours.

Devendra Bishoo was the most successful West Indies bowler with two for 149 from 38 overs.

"It is really, really good to score a Test hundred as a captain because the team is always looking towards you for something special," said Misbah.

"For your own confidence, and the sake of the team, it is really important that you chip in and perform at all stages of the game.

"But we have not won the Test match yet. Until we have taken the final wicket, we have not won it yet.

"It's still a game of cricket, and we have to finish the game, unless it's half the job done."

Tanvir Ahmed made an early breakthrough for the Pakistanis, leaving West Indies 54 for one at tea, when he bowled West Indies opener Kraigg Brathwaite for a duck in the third over of the innings.

After tea, the visitors made a huge charge for victory, with Rehman playing a leading role, with the wickets of Lendl Simmons and Ramnaresh Sarwan in the space of five deliveries.

The Pakistan left-arm spinner had Simmons caught at second slip for 24, and Sarwan, the most experienced batsman in the West Indies line-up, was lbw playing back and across for a duck, a decision from New Zealand umpire Billy Bowden, which was changed after it was reviewed.

Rehman added the scalp of Marlon Samuels caught behind for six to leave West Indies 77 for four, but the Pakistanis met defiance from the left-handed pair of Bravo and West Indies vice captain Brendan Nash.

The visitors spent over an hour working away on the West Indies pair before Bravo cracked under the pressure, and was lbw to left-arm fast bowler Wahab Riaz. He struck two fours and two sixes from 144 balls in close to three hours of batting.

Earlier, Pakistan jammed their foot down on the accelerator, anticipating the declaration after they reached 202 for three at lunch.

Misbah reached his hundred from 141 balls, with a thick edge to third man off Ravi Rampaul for his last boundary to prompt the declaration.

Umar Akmal shared 62 with him for the sixth wicket before Bishoo bowled him for 30, and Mohammad Salman was caught at deep fine leg off Rampaul for eight before the declaration came.

Pakistan trail 0-1 in the two-Test series, following a 40-run defeat inside four days in the first Test, which ended last Sunday at the Guyana National Stadium, crushing their dreams of a maiden Test series victory in the Caribbean.

Clinical Chennai beat Kochi in IPL

Wriddhiman Saha scored a respectable 46 not out to set up a 11-run win for Chennai Super Kings against Kochi Tuskers Kerala in the Indian Premier League on Wednesday.

Saha cracked three sixes and a four in his 33-ball knock as Chennai posted a competitive 5-152 before restricting Kochi to 5-141 on a slow track at the Chidambaram Stadium.

The victory, Chennai's seventh in a row at home, moved Mahendra Singh Dhoni's side to the top of the points table with nine wins from 13 outings.

IPL debutants Kochi bowed out of the tournament after going down to their eighth defeat from 14 games in the Twenty20 competition.

Australian Brad Hodge top-scored with an unbeaten 51 off 42 balls to keep Kochi in the hunt but lacked support from the other batsmen.

Chennai did not get the start that they would have wanted after electing to bat, losing three quick wickets inside nine overs against some fine bowling and catching by paceman Rudra Pratap Singh.

After shattering the off-stump of opener Murali Vijay with a stinging yorker, Singh pulled off a stunning catch of Subramaniam Badrinath by diving to his right and picking the ball inches off the ground.

Australian Mike Hussey, whose clean catch by Parthiv Patel off an attempted paddle sweep was turned down by umpire Rudi Koertzen, lifted the innings briefly with a 37-ball 32.

Saha, a surprise selection in India's one-day and Twenty20 squad for the upcoming tour of the West Indies, provided the late impetus to take the total past the 150-run mark.

Deccan win Sangakkara's last IPL match

Deccan Chargers capitalised on a strong start to post a six-wicket victory over Pune Warriors in their Indian Premier League (IPL) match on Monday.

Sunny Sohal (34) and Shikhar Dhawan (28) put on 67 for the opening wicket before Deccan achieved a 137-run target with four balls to spare for their fifth win in 13 matches of the Twenty20 tournament.

Skipper Kumar Sangakkara (25), playing his last IPL match before joining the Sri Lankan squad in England, did not wait for the umpire's decision and walked after being caught behind off leg-spinner Rahul Sharma.

Deccan, already out of contention, also ended Pune's slim chances of making it to the semi-finals.

Bangalore lead the 10-team league table with 17 points, followed by Chennai (16), Mumbai (16), Kolkata (14), Punjab (12), Kochi (12), Rajasthan (11), Deccan (10), Pune (eight) and Delhi (eight).

Australian seamer Daniel Christian, leg-spinner Amit Mishra and left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha earlier took two wickets each to restrict Pune to a modest total.

Australian Mitchell Marsh hit three sixes in his 28-ball 37, while skipper Yuvraj Singh and opener Manish Pandey were the other main scorers with 23 each.

Punjab stun Mumbai to keep IPL hopes alive

MOHALI, India, May 10 (Reuters) - Praveen Kumar dealt early blows while Bhargav Bhatt polished off the tail as Kings XI Punjab stunned Mumbai Indians by 76 runs to keep their playoff hopes alive in the Indian Premier League on Tuesday.

Put into bat at their home ground, Punjab began in the right earnest before their middle and lower order caved in against Munaf Patel (5-21) and Lasith Malinga (2-24).

Only Shaun Marsh (43) and Dinesh Karthik (31) looked at ease as Punjab managed 163-8 that did not look particularly intimidating against Mumbai's famed batting line-up.

Kumar (2-19), however, had other ideas as he cheaply removed both Mumbai openers Sachin Tendulkar and Aiden Blizzard to trigger a collapse and left-arm spinner Bhatt (4-22) grabbed three wickets in four balls to skittle out the visitors for 87 in 12.5 overs.

While league leaders Mumbai have already qualified for the next round, Punjab lie ninth and probably need to win all their remaining four matches and hope other results go their way if they are to progress further.

In Hyderabad, Pune Warriors beat Deccan Chargers by six wickets even though they are out of the play-off contentions.

For Pune, Mitchell Marsh (4-25) and Yuvraj Singh (2-17) restricted Deccan to 136-8 and they returned to chase down the target in 18.2 overs.

Openers Manish Pandey (49) and Jesse Ryder (35) gave Pune a flying start and Sourav Ganguly, playing his first match this IPL season after initially being ignored in the players' auction, remained unbeaten after a run-a-ball 32 to guide them to victory.

Deccan are the only team that have no chance of advancing any further in the competition.

Marsh, Ganguly star in Pune victory

Australian allrounder Mitchell Marsh grabbed four wickets and Sourav Ganguly hit an unbeaten 32 on comeback as Pune Warriors beat Deccan Chargers by six wickets in the Indian Premier League on Tuesday.

Marsh, 19, finished with 4-25 as Pune restricted Deccan to 8-136 before achieving the target with 10 balls to spare for their fourth win in 11 matches of the Twenty20 tournament.

Former India captain Ganguly, who went unsold at the player auction before being signed up by Pune as a replacement for injured seamer Ashish Nehra, looked impressive during his 32-ball knock, hitting one six and three fours.

Opener Manish Pandey top-scored for Pune with 49, while New Zealander Jesse Ryder smashed a 20-ball 35 with the help of two sixes and five fours.

Both the teams are virtually out of contention for a place in the semi-finals, with Pune having secured eight points and Deccan six.

Mumbai have already made sure of a place in the last four with 16 points.

They are followed by Chennai (14), Kolkata (14), Bangalore (13), Rajasthan (11), Kochi (10), Pune (eight), Delhi (eight), Deccan (six) and Punjab (six).

Marsh, son of former Australian opener Geoff Marsh and younger brother of batsman Shaun, and left-arm spinner Yuvraj Singh were instrumental in restricting Deccan to a modest total.

Deccan made a strong start after electing to bat when Ravi Teja (30) and Shikhar Dhawan (24) put on 51 for the opening wicket before skipper Yuvraj struck with his fourth delivery.

The spinner broke the stand when he bowled Dhawan before finishing with 2-17 off four overs.

Marsh also got a wicket in his opening over when he bowled Teja before dismissing South African JP Duminy (30), Sunny Sohal and Amit Mishra in the space of five balls in his fourth and last over.

Vijay, Dhoni shape Chennai victory

Murali Vijay hit 53 and Mahendra Singh Dhoni cracked a 19-ball 41 not out to set up Chennai Super Kings' 63-run win over Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League on Monday.

Chennai posted a challenging 3-196 before bowling Rajasthan out for 133 to boost their hopes of qualifying for the semi-finals of the Twenty20 tournament.

Mumbai have already made sure of a place in the semi-finals with 16 points. They are followed by Chennai (14), Kolkata (14), Bangalore (13), Rajasthan (11), Kochi (10), Delhi (eight), Pune (six), Deccan (six) and Punjab (six).

Ajinkya Rahane top-scored with 52 for Rajasthan, who suffered their fifth defeat in 11 matches. Rahul Dravid was the other major contributor with 20.

Australian paceman Doug Bollinger was the most successful bowler with 3-22 while off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin took 2-24. Spinner Suresh Raina finished the match when he bagged the last two wickets off three balls.

Chennai owed their victory to batsmen, with opener Vijay, Australian Michael Hussey (46), Dhoni and Raina (43) all contributing to help their team set a stiff target.

They got off to a solid start after being put in to bat, with Hussey and Vijay adding 77 runs for the opening wicket. Vijay also put on 58 for the second wicket with Raina.

Hussey hit eight fours in his impressive 30-ball knock before being bowled by South African off-spinner Johan Botha.

Vijay, dropped on four, made the most of the chance and completed his half-century with a six off seamer Siddharth Trivedi. He smashed three sixes in his 40-ball knock.

Chennai scored 60 in the last five overs, thanks to skipper Dhoni and Raina. Dhoni hit three sixes and as many fours in his brisk knock.

Brief scores:

CHENNAI SUPER KINGS 3-196 in 20 overs (M. Vijay 53, M. Hussey 46, S. Raina 43, MS Dhoni 41 not out) beat RAJASTHAN ROYALS 133 in 19.3 overs (A. Rahane 52, R. Dravid 20; D. Bollinger 3-22, S. Raina 2-0, R. Ashwin 2-24) by 63 runs.

Cook to captain England ODI team, Broad gets T20 job

Alastair Cook and Stuart Broad were appointed as the new captains of England's one-day international (ODI) and Twenty20 teams respectively, it was announced here in London on Thursday.

Andrew Strauss, who has retired from one-dayers, remains Test skipper meaning England now have separate captains for all three international formats.

Cook, Strauss's opening partner in Tests, was not even a member of the England side at the recent one-day World Cup in the subcontinent.

Broad replaced all-rounder Paul Collingwood as Twenty20 captain.

Strauss, who led England to the World Cup quarter-finals where they were beaten by Sri Lanka in Colombo in March, said: "I've enjoyed my time as England one-day captain immensely and I'm extremely proud of the strides we've made in limited overs cricket over the past two years.

"We still have a long way to go if we're to achieve our goal of winning ICC global events and I feel now is the right time for me to step aside and ensure someone else takes up that challenge.

"Retiring from one-day cricket will also enable me to focus solely on the Test captaincy and our ongoing development in the Test arena as we also strive to be the top ranked team in world cricket."

Strauss, 34, had been widely expected to stand down from ODIs after the World Cup.

England scraped through the group phase but then suffered a 10-wicket thrashing by Sri Lanka, having arrived at the World Cup after just a few days at home following their Ashes-winning tour of Australia.

Cook was the star England batsman during the 3-1 Ashes series triumph, making 766 runs.

But he was not included in the subsequent one-day series or World Cup squads. There has long been the belief the 26-year-old, who has made just three ODI appearances in the past two-and-a-half years, all during last year's tour of Bangladesh when Strauss was rested, is too staid a batsman for ODIs.

However, much the same was long said about fellow left-hander Strauss and he was England's best batsman at the World Cup, scoring a superb century in the thrilling tie with co-hosts and eventual champions India.

This will be the first time England have had captains for all three forms of international cricket and coach Andy Flower admitted the new set-up was potentially risky.

"We are covering new ground," Flower said. "We do not know 100 percent whether it will work or be an effective and efficient system, but we are going to give it a try.

"With the quality people around us, I think we form a good leadership team."

Cook said: "Andrew Strauss has led the one-day team to continued success over the past two years and I'll be looking to continue that progress as captain.

"I've worked hard on my limited overs cricket in recent times - I've never seen myself as a Test batsman exclusively and I know I have a lot to offer strategically and as a top order batsman in one-day cricket."

Fast-bowling all-rounder Broad, will make his debut as T20 captain when he leads world champions against Sri Lanka in Bristol on June 25.

He said: "It's a huge privilege to be named England Twenty20 captain.

Collingwood added: "It's been a privilege to captain my country. The highlight was clearly last year's World Twenty20 title but there have been many achievements to be proud of."

Pakistan lose by 10 wickets, win series

Pakistan's batting was undermined by West Indies' three frontline seamers and their bowling upstaged by another blistering innings from Lendl Simmons in a 10-wicket loss in the fifth one-day international on Thursday.

A fluent 55 off 83 balls from Mohammad Hafeez failed to inspire the Pakistani, and their batting crumbled for the first time in the series as they were all out for 139 in 41.2 overs after winning the toss on an unpredictable Guyana National Stadium pitch.

The visitors' bowlers found it difficult to defend such a modest target as Simmons hit a career-best, unbeaten 77 from 73 deliveries, and fellow opener Kirk Edwards supported with 40 from 71 ball to guide the hosts to victory with 159 balls remaining.

Pakistan however, won the five-match series 3-2, with comfortable victories in the first three matches.

"It is a disappointing end to the series for us because it was not a pitch on which we should have been dismissed for 139," said Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi.

"Our batting has been struggling for a long time, and I think we need someone to help us with situations like this."

"We all wanted to bat on this pitch and that is why the management and I decided to bat, but we did not play well. The thing that I always keep stressing - building partnerships - we did not build any partnerships and this is what was missing."

Afridi added: "The series victory is important for us. We are not playing any cricket at home, so winning this series is very important and will keep the morale high, and I think for the future it will be good for us."

Hafeez and Umar Akmal were the only Pakistani batsman to pass 20 as Ravi Rampaul up-ended the visitors batting with four for 45 from his allotted 10 overs.

West Indies captain Darren Sammy grabbed three for 30 from 10 overs, and Dwayne Bravo supported with two for 16.

"It is a good feeling to have won again, but it's been well-played in the last two games for the boys," said Sammy.

"We played as a team, and got the result that we wanted. This was the type of performance for which we have been searching for a very long time. It showed the good work that we have been doing at practices has finally transferred to the game, and it was good to see everybody taking part, and it was a total team effort."

He added: "The way we have chased down totals in the last two games, I guess it may be fair to say that our guys are more comfortable doing this. But throughout the series, we created several opportunities to win it, but we did not put enough runs on the board."

They now play two Tests, starting next Thursday at this same ground, and from May 20 to 24 at Warner Park in St. Kitts.

Sehwag century floors Deccan in IPL

Skipper Virender Sehwag smashed 119 off just 56 balls in a stunning counter-attack as Delhi Daredevils snatched a four-wicket victory over Deccan Chargers in the Indian Premier League on Thursday.

In another match, a fine half-century by Eoin Morgan went in vain as hosts Kochi pulled off a 17-run upset win over Kolkata Knight Riders to spice up the race for the play-offs.

Chasing 176, Delhi were reeling at 4-86 but Sehwag whacked six sixes and 13 fours on way to his maiden Twenty20 century to single-handedly fashion a thrilling win for his struggling side at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Hyderabad.

The victory, Delhi's fourth from 10 games, kept alive their chances of progressing to the knockouts while Deccan slipped to eighth in the points table.

A sloppy Delhi earlier allowed Deccan to pile up 5-175 after winning the toss and electing to field.

Skipper Kumar Sangakkara (44) and Shikhar Dhawan had chances dropped, while JP Duminy (55) and Daniel Christian would have been dismissed in the space of three balls had Yogesh Nagar not over-stepped twice in the 15th over.

In Kochi, Kolkata were cruising at 0-69 chasing 157, but Raiphi Gomez grabbed two wickets in two balls and Vinay Kumar sent back Morgan (66) and Yusuf Pathan in the 19th over to restrict the visitors to 7-139.

The victory moved Kochi to fifth in the points table and brought them back into contention for a place in the play-offs, while Kolkata remained in second place with 12 points.

England's Morgan impressed the most among the Kolkata batsmen, hitting eight fours and two sixes in his 51-ball knock after Jacques Kallis made 45 opening the innings.

Kolkata paceman Jaidev Unadkat struck a double blow after skipper Gautam Gambhir won the toss and elected to field, dismissing opener Brendon McCullum (one) and Parthiv Patel (21) inside the first six overs.

Batting at No.4, skipper Mahela Jayawardene (55) rebuilt the innings in the company of Australia's Michael Klinger (29) with a 51-run stand for the third wicket.

Brad Hodge boosted the total with a late assault off the final over bowled by his Australian team-mate Brett Lee, clobbering two sixes and two fours to finish on an unbeaten 35 off just 19 balls.

Brief scores:

KOCHI TUSKERS KERALA 5-156 in 20 overs (M. Jayawardene 55, B. Hodge 35 not out, M. Klinger 29; J. Unadkat 2-25) bt KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS 7-139 in 20 overs (E. Morgan 66, J. Kallis 45; R. Gomez 2-14, V. Kumar 2-28) by 17 runs

DECCAN CHARGERS 5-175 in 20 overs (JP Duminy 55, K. Sangakkara 44, S. Dhawan 29, D. Christian 27 not out; A. Agarkar 2-29) lost to DELHI DAREDEVILS 6-179 in 19 overs (V. Sehwag 119; I. Sharma 2-16, D. Steyn 2-24) by four wickets.

Pune Warriors' losing streak continues

Navi Mumbai: Mumbai Indians reclaimed the top spot in the points table after thumping a hapless Pune Warriors by 21 runs in their Indian Premier League clash at Dr D Y Patil Sports Academy here on Wednesday.

Mumbai Indians posted a challenging 160 for seven after being invited to bat as T Suman blazed his way to a 16-ball 36 and Pollard played a useful 29-run cameo towards the end to help the side recover from a sluggish start.

Backed by some disciplined bowling and inspiring fielding, Mumbai then restricted the Warriors to 139 for seven to record their seventh win in nine matches.

The Warriors slumped to seventh defeat in a row and they need a miracle of sorts to make the play-offs. Their last win had come on April 13 at this ground when they had defeated Kochi Tuskers Kerala by four wickets.

Lasith Malinga (3/25) was the most successful bowler for Mumbai while Harbhajan Singh (1/17), Munaf Patel (1/30) and Kieron Pollard (1/36) all took one wicket apeice.

Warriors were never in the chase after losing Jesse Ryder off the very first ball of the innings from Harbhajan Singh, though Manish Pandey (59) fought a losing battle from one end.

Pandey, who knock came off 47 balls, and Robin Uthappa (34 unbeaten off 26) were the only batsmen who resisted the formidable Mumbai attack but their effort could only reduce the defeat margin.

Pune skipper Yuvraj Singh (20) sizzled for a while, hitting two sixes and a four during his short stay at the crease, but was undone by a brilliant bouncer by Malinga and an equally good catch by Munaf in the third-man region.

Earlier, Mumbai had managed just 65 runs for two wickets after 10 overs but found an unlikely hero in Suman, who hit three sixes and as many fours to lead the fightback.

Pollard played a useful cameo (29 off 21), with two fours and as many sixes to help Mumbai go past the 150-run mark.

Pune bowlers had done an exceptional job early on and leg-spinner Rahul Sharma returned incredible figures of 4-0-7-2 but the good work was undone when Suman and Pollard had their way.

Yuvraj accounted for Mumbai's most productive duo of skipper Sachin Tendulkar (24) and Ambati Rayudu (27).

As in earlier games, the opening partnership did not yield too many runs for Mumbai as the new partner for skipper Tendulkar, Australian youngster Aiden Blizzard (6) perished in the third over to leave them at 18 for one.

The left-handed batsman was caught by a diving stumper Robin Uthappa in front of the slip fielder. But Tendulkar was in very good touch as he drove and clipped Alfonso Thomas and Shrikant Wagh for three fours in the first two overs.

Once again it was left to the Tendulkar and Rayudu to forge a meaningful stand.

Rayudu hooked West Indies pacer Jerome Taylor and then glided the bowler over the head of wicket keeper for successive fours to step up the run rate.

Tendulkar then glanced and top-edged left-arm Wagh for successive fours to help Mumbai finish the power-play with 49 on board.

One run later, the master batsman had a close shave when he was well out of the crease after setting out for a run, but Uthappa failed to hit the stumps from short square leg.

Yuvraj brought himself into the attack and struck a major blow in his second over by sending back Tendulkar, who was caught off a full blooded drive brilliantly by Jesse Ryder at short extra cover.

His partnership with Rayudu, the most successful pair for Mumbai in the tournament, realised 40 runs in 35 balls.

Yuvraj accounted for Rayudu too by having him caught at long off for 27 as Mumbai reached 69 for three from 58 for one in quick time.

Suman, surprisingly promoted ahead of both Pollard and Andrew Symonds, struck the first six of the match with a heave off Ryder over long-on.

The Hyderabad Ranjji player then off-drove Yuvraj for a four and hoisted Taylor over long-leg for his second six.

Rohit Sharma, strangely subdued at the other end, fell to the leg spin of the lanky Rahul Sharma in the next over, caught at long-on off a slog in the 15th over.

Suman continued to impress with his aggressive batting and struck Alfonso Thomas for two successive boundaries and followed it with a six over long off in the 16th over to give the much-needed thrust to the flagging innings.

Suman departed while trying to hoist Rahul over long off and was caught by Mithun Manhas.

Pollard took over the attacking reins and in one over from Thomas, the 19th of the innings, he cracked two fours and a six off the South African bowler whose analysis then read an unflattering 1 for 53.

The most impressive bowler for the Warriors was Sharma who has had a very impressive stint in the IPL. He finished with very creditable figures of two for seven in four overs while Yuvraj Singh and Jerome Taylor picked up two wickets apiece.