Mumbai Indians crush LSG by 54 runs for fifth straight win
Mumbai, Apr 27 (PTI): In-form Mumbai Indians extended their winning run with a 54-run hammering of Lucknow Super Giants, recording their fifth consecutive victory in the Indian Premier League (IPL) here Sunday.
The hosts smashed LSG in a one-sided clash in which Suryakumar Yadav grabbed lead as tournament's leading run-scorer, with his 28-ball 54.
Suryakumar continued to plunder runs to become the leading run-scorer in this IPL, crossing the 400-run mark with his third fifty. The India T20 skipper also completed his 4,000 runs in the tournament.
Ryan Rickelton also sizzled with a 32-ball 58 that helped MI post a stiff 215 for seven being invited to take first strike.
With a handsome total to defend, Mumbai Indians juggled their bowlers cleverly as the visitors struggled to find response to the challenges thrown by the home bowlers.
With his wickets column not reflecting how well he has bowled since his comeback, pacer Jasprit Bumrah finally reaped the rewards to return with impressive figure of 4-0-22-4. He broke the back of LSG's chase with three wickets in the 16th over.
In the process, Bumrah also went past Lasith Malinga (170) to become MI's leading wicket-taker in IPL history.
LSG's chase was also marred by another poor outing for their captain Rishabh Pant (4). They were shot out for 161 on a perfect batting surface at the Wankhede Stadium.
Bumrah, usually reserved for later stages, was brought on early into the attack against a top-heavy LSG batting line-up and he produced immediate breakthrough in the third over.
Bumrah nailed Aiden Markram (9) with precision as he angled three deliveries straight into the right-hander, who hit the next one straight to Naman Dhir trying to fend off the pressure.
Pooran went after Deepak Chahar in the sixth over, slicing sixes off two wide full tosses and putting one into the stands over midwicket but his charge didn’t last against MI’s dependable right-arm spin option in Will Jacks (2-0-18-2).
In the seventh over, Suryakumar, placed at long off just before the first delivery from Jacks, ran to his left and took a sharp diving catch to get rid of the dangerous Pooran.
Jacks then had the out-of-form Pant caught at short third man off a meek reverse sweep, with LSG sliding to 60 for three.
Mitchell Marsh, who had begun well with a couple of gigantic sixes in the powerplay, lasted more than halfway through the chase for LSG but could not contribute beyond a 24-ball 34 (3x4s, 2x6s).
The wickets fell regularly around him at the top, forcing the Australian to change gears and be more conservative, in which he eventually failed.
His resistance ended in the 12th over when Trent Boult (3/20) dropped one short and Marsh pulled it hard but failed to get the distance, caught by Tilak Varma at deep square leg.
Boult was once again impactful as he accounted for Marsh, Ayush Badoni (35) and Digvesh Rathi (1) in the final ball of the match.
Earlier in the first half, Suryakumar’s belligerent 54 and Rickelton's 58 fired Mumbai Indians to a good total.
Suryakumar's 28-ball knock, laced with four sixes and as many fours, kept MI on track for a total in excess of 200 even as Tilak Varma (6) and Hardik Pandya (5) fell in quick succession.
The standout stroke during his innings was when Suryakumar went down on his knee to lift Prince Yadav (1/44) over fine leg for a six on a waist-high ball.
LSG's decision to bowl first, anticipating a spin-friendly track under the sun backfired to some extent on a batting-friendly pitch here, with none of their bowlers able to control stroke-play.
MI's scoring rate hovered around 10 runs an over even as it felt they were going through a slowdown in the second half.
Rickelton's assault in the powerplay fuelled Mumbai's charge even as they lost the in-form Rohit Sharma early on.
Coming into the match after scoring back-to-back fifties, Rohit (12) welcomed India speedster Mayank Yadav (2/40) with two consecutive sixes. But the India captain was undone by a slower delivery.
Mayank pulled Rohit outside off on a 120kmph delivery in the third over, which the batter cut straight into the hands of Prince at third man.
But the early blow had no impact whatsoever as Rickelton stroked his way for an impressive second IPL fifty off 25 balls.
The left-handed South African wicketkeeper-batter hit his strides early in the game, hitting powerfully down the wicket and putting away anything in his range into the stands.
Rickelton forged a second-wicket partnership of 55 runs with Will Jacks (29), setting the foundation for the middle order.
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Delhi CM Rekha Gupta accuses Mamata Banerjee of stalling SIR; TMC hits back
Kolkata (PTI): Alleging that her West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee had approached the Supreme Court to stall the SIR exercise to prevent the identification of infiltrators, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Sunday claimed that the people of the state have made up their minds to dislodge the Trinamool Congress from power.
The TMC countered strongly, urging Gupta to "look into her own backyard" and accused her of making absurd allegations against the TMC government without checking facts.
Addressing participants at the 'Nari Sankalp Yatra' organised by the BJP's women's wing at Science City auditorium here, Gupta alleged that the "hands-off" and appeasement policies of the TMC government had allowed thousands of infiltrators to enter the state in recent years.
She claimed that this had put a strain on basic rights such as access to water, electricity, ration, education, livelihood and the right to vote for genuine citizens.
"She wants to perpetuate this and hence is trying to stall the SIR exercise, which aims at identifying and deporting infiltrators. Imagine a chief minister going to the apex court to argue against an exercise meant to ensure free and fair polls," Gupta said.
The BJP leader alleged that appeasement politics had reached an "alarming level" under the TMC regime.
Raising concerns over women's safety, she claimed that women in the state were not secure despite having a woman chief minister.
Referring to the rape-murder of a woman doctor at RG Kar Hospital, Gupta alleged that the state government had failed to respond adequately to such crimes.
She also referred to the alleged rape of a woman medic in Durgapur and another law student on a Kolkata college campus, claiming that criminals had been emboldened to commit brutalities against women.
She alleged that in crimes against women, overall crime incidents and child marriages, West Bengal remained among the top -- "a slur on a state which once led intellectual and social movements and set examples for the rest of the country," she said.
Criticising the state government's welfare initiatives, she said schemes such as Kanyashree were built on "false claims" and asserted that women needed security rather than assurances.
Accusing the state government of blocking central schemes, Gupta alleged that funds worth "lakhs of crores of rupees" had not reached the poor due to non-implementation of programmes such as Ayushman Bharat, PM Awas Yojana and Jal Jeevan Mission by the state.
"You are only interested in renaming projects and taking credit," she said.
Gupta also alleged that the education sector in the state had been adversely affected, saying several state-run schools had closed due to a shortage of teachers and that the government was opposed to the National Education Policy.
Drawing a comparison with BJP-ruled Delhi, Gupta said, "People have already voted out 'Bhaia' (a reference to former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal). Now it is your turn to bid farewell to 'Didi'." Calling upon women to resist what she termed "strong-arm tactics", she urged them to assert their strength, invoking the imagery of Goddess Durga.
"Bengal has the right to live with dignity, and women have the right to live with dignity," she added.
Reacting to Gupta's allegations, West Bengal Women and Child Welfare minister Shashi Panja accused her of making "absurd allegations" against the Trinamool Congress government ahead of elections.
Panja alleged that during Gupta's tenure in Delhi, several incidents had raised serious concerns, including reports of missing young women and a blast near the Red Fort.
She also criticised the air pollution situation in the national capital, claiming that people were struggling to breathe.
The TMC leader said that despite being in power for a year, Gupta was making "tall claims" instead of addressing key issues in Delhi.
Panja further alleged that the Delhi CM visited West Bengal during elections to "peddle false allegations" against the state government.
Rebutting Gupta, the TMC said in a post on X said, "Madam why did you go off-script again? For your edification, here are the cold, hard facts: In total cases of crimes (IPC + SLL), Bengal ranks a respectable 15th, far safer than BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat, which languish near the bottom."
"In overall crime rate, Bengal sits comfortably at 28th. Who's second? Your own Delhi. Double Engine Gujarat and Haryana grab 4th and 5th as top-tier crime havens," the TMC said.
"In child marriage, Assam again takes the shameful pole position. And yet you dare lecture Bengal? Stop embarrassing yourself, stop the hypocrisy, and maybe fix the rotting mess in your own backyard before pointing fingers at a state that's outperforming your disasters on every key metric," the TMC countered.
