Mumbai Indians squandered away a promising start and just managed to post a modest total of 162 for 9 against Chennai Super Kings in the inaugural match of the Dream11 Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.
CSK skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni called correctly and invited Mumbai Indians to take first strike on the lush green ground.
Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma (12) and Quinton de Kock (33) provided a flying start. However, both the openers departed in succession within a few balls which halted the progress.
Saurabh Tiwari (42) then tried to steady the ship with some lusty blows but he flattered to deceive. Kieron Pollard (18), Suryakumar Yadav (17) and Hardik Pandya (14) got starts but failed to capitalize on them.
CSK tall pacer L Ngidi proved the most successful bowler with three wickets. Fellow seamer Deepak Chahar and left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja chipped in with a couple of wickets each.
Brief Scores
Mumbai Indians 162 for 9 in 20 overs (Saurabh Tiwari 42, Quinton de Kock 33, Kieron Pollard 18, Suryakumar Yadav 17, Hardik Pandya 14, Rohit Sharma 12, James Pattinson 11; L Ngidi 3 for 38, Deepak Chahar 2 for 32, Ravindra Jadeja 2-42, Piyush Chawla 1-21, S Curran 1-28) vs CSK.