IPL 2021: PBKS vs MI Review – Punjab trounce Mumbai to seal a clinical victory

Punjab Kings came out of the rut in which they were stuck and that too against one of the best teams in the league. On Friday, April 23, Punjab Kings defeated Mumbai Indians by nine wickets in the IPL 2021 league match. With the ball, Punjab first restricted Mumbai for just 131. Then, with the bat, it was some solid batting from the top three batsmen to chase down the target.

Punjab captain KL Rahul won the toss and chose to field first, taking upon the tough task of chasing in Chennai. The plan to start with Deepak Hooda against Quinton de Kock worked beautifully as the former picked up the wicket of the latter in his first over. Ishan Kishan struggled during his 17-ball 6 and put pressure on his side.

Mumbai skipper Rohit Sharma scored his first fifty of this season, scoring 63 runs from 52 balls. He was well supported by Suryakumar Yadav, who made 33 runs from 27 balls. Kieron Pollard played a cameo which guided Mumbai to 131. For Punjab, it was Ravi Bishnoi and Mohammed Shami who took two wickets.

Punjab chased down the target easily in the end, with 14 balls still left. Mumbai bowled well to keep things tight but it was eventually a solid batting display that took Punjab home. KL Rahul scored 60 runs from 52 balls. Chris Gayle played an important hand of 43 runs from 25 balls. Mayank Agarwal also chipped in with a 20-ball 25 which gave a good start to Punjab.

Top performers:

KL Rahul: The way he timed the innings was quite fantastic. He tried to score quickly early on in the innings when the ball was easier to score off but eventually decided to give himself time and finish the chase himself. He made 60 runs in which there were only three fours and three sixes.

Ravi Bishnoi: After having a good season with the ball last time around, Bishnoi didn’t get a place in Punjab starting XI. But, having finally been introduced in the line-up, he bowled a terrific spell. He took the scalps of Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav. His spell was one of the major deciding factors in the match.

Personal achievements/Records:

Rohit became the third-highest run-getter in IPL today while also becoming the fourth player to score 4500+ runs for an IPL team

Way ahead:

Mumbai Indians’ next match is against Rajasthan Royals on April 29 in Delhi while Punjab will now face Kolkata Knight Riders on April 26 in Ahmedabad.