On a crazy day of cricket when record three Super Over contests happened in a day for the first time, Kings XI Punjab squeezed past Mumbai Indians in the second Super Over to keep their chances alive in the Dream11 Indian Premier League on Sunday.
In a marathon match full of turn and twists, Kings XI Punjab emerged victorious to give a perfect birthday gift to their legendary coach Anil Kumble, who turned 50 on Sunday.
When the regulation match and first Super Over failed to deliver results, it all boiled down to the second Super Over — third in the day as first match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad also witnessed Super Over — to break the tie at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
Needing 12 runs in the Super Over, Chris Gayle gave a flying start to his team with a powerful six to long-on off Trent Boult. After a single on the next ball, the focus shifted to Mayank Agarwal. The in-form opener smashed two excellent boundaries in three balls to clinch a much-needed win for Kings XI Punjab with a ball to spare.
With this win, Kings XI Punjab took their points tally to six from nine matches. It was the second successive win for the Punjab-based franchise after they shocked Royal Challengers Bangalore last Thursday.
The third win in the competition helped Kings XI Punjab jumped from bottom to sixth place. Interestingly, in all the three wins so far by Kings XI Punjab, KL Rahul was declared man-of-the-match as the batsman led from the front. Orange Cap is just the proof of his purple patch.
On Sunday too, he played another splendid innings of 77 to almost take his team to victory.
Earlier, another half-century from Quinton de Kock (53), a quick-fire cameo by Kieron Pollard (34 not out) and Nathan Coulter-Nile (24 not out) propelled Mumbai Indians to 176 for 6 in 20 overs after they opted to bat.
Chasing a daunting target, Kings XI Punjab ended up with the same score and tied the game. Rahul top-scored with 77 while Deepak Hooda remained undefeated on 16-ball 23.
The match entered the Super Over where Kings XI Punjab batted first and put 5 for 1 on the board. Mohammed Shami defended six runs in the first Super Over to take the match into the second one.
Pollard and Hardik Pandya came out to bat in the final Super Over as Mumbai Indians scored 11 for 1. Gayle and Agarwal did the job for their team.
On Monday, Chennai Super Kings will face Rajasthan Royals at Abu Dhabi in a must-win match for both the teams.
Brief scores
Mumbai Indians 176 for 6 in 20 overs (Quinton de Kock 53, Kieron Pollard 34 not out, Krunal Pandya 34, Nathan Coulter-Nile 24 not out; Mohammed Shami 2-30, Arshdeep Singh 2-35, Ravi Bishnoi 1-12, Chris Jordan 1-32) tied with Kings XI Punjab 176 for 6 in 20 overs (KL Rahul 77, Chris Gayle 24, Nicholas Pooran 24, Deepak Hooda 23 not out, Chris Jordan 13, Mayank Agarwal 11; Jasprit Bumrah 3-24, Rahul Chahar 2-33).
Man-of-the-match: KL Rahul (Kings XI Punjab).
Courtesy: orangecitysports.com
