A disciplined performance from defending champions followed by a inspired bowling effort from the bowlers ensured the four time champions notch up their second win of the league n against Kings XI Punjab in Abu Dhabi. Chasing a daunting 192 for victory, Punjab got off to a good start with KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal teeing off but then a flurry of wickets just exposed the fragile middle order as Punjab's chase then crumbled like a pack of cards. Nicholas Pooran hit a solid 44 off 27 but lacked support from the other end.
For Mumbai, James Pattinson, Rahul Chahar and Jasprit Bumrah picked up a couple of wickets each while Trent Boult and Krunal Pandya also managed a wicket. Batting first, MI posted 191/4 in 20 overs after a captain’s knock from Rohit Sharma (70) and a strong finish from Kieron Pollard (47*) and Hardik Pandya (30*), who added 62 runs from the last three overs of the innings. Rohit became the third person — after Suresh Raina and Virat Kohli — to reach 5000 runs in IPL history. Rohit kept losing partners as KXIP kept picking wickets regularly. They crossed the 100-run mark in the 15th over, and then shifted gears, with Pollard and Pandya taking over after Rohit’s wicket. Mumbai now have 2 wins and 2 defeats from their four matches.
