KXIP trump MI in second Super Over in dramatic IPL game
Dubai: Kings XI Punjab showed nerves of steel as they defeated defending champions Mumbai Indians in an edge-of-the-seat IPL game that was decided via a second Super Over for the first time in the history of the tournament here on Sunday.
Kieron Pollard helped MI score 11 for one in the second Super Over bowled by Chris Jordan after both the teams ended at the same score in the regulation 20 overs as well as in the first Super Over.
Chris Gayle then hit the first ball bowled by Trent Boult for a six before Mayank Agarwal cracked successive fours as KXIP notched up an incredible win to keep their IPL play-off hopes alive.
This was after Jasprit Bumrah dismissed Nicholas Pooran and KL Rahul in the first Super Over to leave MI with a six-run target.
However, Mohammed Shami bowled an equally incredible over as KXIP defended the five runs to take the match to a second Super Over.
Earlier, Rahul smashed a scintillating 51-ball 77 to take KXIP on the brink of a successful chase but team-mates Deepak Hooda and Jordan could only level the scores at 176 for six in the stipulated 20 overs.
Bumrah (3/24) snared three crucial wickets during the regulation 20 overs after opener Quinton de Kock (53 off 43) hit his fourth half-century of the season to restrict KXIP.
Opting to bat, MI were reduced to 43 for 3 but opener de Kock scored a 43-ball 53 and shared a 58-run stand with Krunal Pandya (34) to steady the ship.
Pollard (34 not out off 12) and Nathan Coulter-Nile (24 not out off 12) then provided the late flourish, adding 57 off 21 balls in the death overs as MI posted 176 for 6.
Chasing 177, Rahul, who currently holds the orange cap, blasted seven fours and three sixes in his knock to cross 500 runs this season and almost single-handedly take KXIP home.
He, alongwith Gayle (24), took KXIP to 75 for one in nine overs after losing Mayank Agarwal (11) early in the innings.
However, Gayle was sent packing by Rahul Chahar in the 10th over and then Bumrah returned to dismiss Nicholas Pooran (24 off 11) to leave Punjab at 108 for 3.
Rahul then pulled Chahar for a six to bring up yet another fifty but the leg-spinner made a good comeback one ball later, removing Glenn Maxwell at the other end as KXIP slipped to 115 for four in 14th over.
Rahul added another 38 with Deepak Hooda (23 not out) but he was done in by a yorker from Bumrah in the 18th over.
Needing 24 off 15 balls, Hooda and Chris Jordon (13) tied the match.
Earlier, de Kock hit three fours and as many sixes for his fourth fifty of the tournament to anchor the innings before Pollard and Coulter-Nile lifted MI past the 170-run mark.
The pace duo of Arshdeep Singh (2/35) and Mohammed Shami (2/30) provided the early breakthroughs, dismissing Rohit Sharma (9) and Suryakumar Yadav (0) respectively to reduce MI to 24 for two in 3.3 overs.
Ishan Kishan then became Arshdeep's second victim when he was caught at deep third man as MI ended the powerplay at 43 for 3.
Promoted up the order, Krunal deposited Chris Jordon's third ball over deep extra cover and then picked up a four off Glenn Maxwell in the next over.
With the spin duo of M Ashwin and Ravi Bishnoi bowling in tandem, MI picked up the odd boundaries but couldn't completely free their arms to play the shots.
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Pakistan forces kill 67 Afghan Taliban personnel in overnight operations: Minister
Islamabad (PTI): Pakistan security forces killed another 67 Afghan Taliban personnel in overnight operations, repulsing their attacks at 16 locations along the southwestern border early Tuesday, officials said.
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar provided updates on the ongoing Operation Ghazab lil Haq, launched on Feb 26 in response to the Afghan Taliban raids.
Tarar said that 40 Afghan Taliban personnel were killed in overnight operations in the border region along the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
“Physical attack was attempted at one place, while a fire raid was conducted on 12 locations, which were all repulsed without any loss of life,” he said in an update posted on X.
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“At least 40 Afghan Taliban were killed in the overnight operations in KP,” he said, adding that “follow-up” operations continued.
Separately, the Afghan Taliban resorted to physical attack from across the border on 16 locations in Northern Balochistan in Qilla Saifullah, Noshki and Chaman districts while engaging Pakistan troops on 25 locations in a fire raid.
“The attacks at all the locations were repulsed with Afghan Taliban suffering 27 killed and scores injured,” he said.
The minister also said that one soldier of the paramilitary Frontier Corps (FC) Balochistan North was killed while five soldiers were injured.
On Monday, the minister said in a statement that Pakistani security forces killed 435 Afghan Taliban combatants and another 630 of them were injured. He said that 188 tanks and armoured vehicles were destroyed, 31 Afghan posts were captured and 51 locations across Afghanistan were successfully targeted in air strikes.
Meanwhile, state-run PTV reported that the Pakistan armed forces successfully conducted an air operation in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province, destroying the Khogani base.
“Fitna al-Khawarij and Afghan Taliban face massive setbacks on every front after unprovoked aggression,” PTV reported, citing sources.
It further reported that security sources said Operation Ghadab-ul-Haq is still ongoing and will continue until its objectives are achieved.
