22 May, 2008
Aussie blitz downs Indians

Shaun Marsh and Luke Pomersbach's 134-run partnership proved to be the difference as Kings XI Punjab held on to claim a thrilling one-run win over the Mumbai Indians.

The Australian duo of Marsh (81) and Pomersbach (79 not out) helped the Kings recover from the first-over loss of James Hopes as they posted the bulk of their side's daunting total of 189.

Mumbai refused to lie down, however, and the match could have gone either way in a breathless final over that saw the hosts lose three wickets to run-outs as they tried in desperation to scrape together the handful of runs they required for victory.

Vikrant Yeligati's dismissal while trying to steal a run that would have secured a draw brought the curtain down on an enthralling encounter, and ended the Indians' six-match winning run.

The win boosts second-placed Punjab's hopes of reaching the semi-finals while Mumbai is still in the frame to reach the knockout stage in fourth.

Punjab's innings got off to a stuttering start when Hopes was dismissed for a golden duck with just the third ball of the match, Shaun Pollock claiming the scalp as Pinal Shah took the catch behind the stumps.

The combination of Marsh and Pomersbach quickly steadied any early jitters among the visitors' ranks as the pair set about the Mumbai attack.

Marsh lofted a hooked six into the stands to take the score beyond 50 inside eight overs while Pomersbach was in equally aggressive mood and rattled off five fours and two maximums as he brought up his half-century in 38 balls.

Left-hander Marsh showed greater urgency on his way to his seventh Twenty20 fifty, achieving the feat three balls earlier than Pomersbach.

Their partnership came to an end in the 15th over when Marsh was caught at long off by Pollock off the bowling of Siddharth Chitnis just 19 runs shy of his century.

Yuvraj Singh (seven) and Mahela Jayawardene (one) failed to add much to the Punjab total and Pomersbach was left unbeaten on 79 alongside Irfan Pathan (nine) when the visitors ran out of overs.

Sachin Tendulkar led the fightback for Mumbai with a solid 65 before he was run out attempting a single in the 17th over, but long before then his team-mates just failed to do enough to back up their captain.

Sanath Jayasuriya (20), Dwayne Smith (20) and Abhishek Nayar (27) had solid if unspectacular innings while the middle order and the tail failed to fire as the pressure told in the final overs.

Pollock's dismissal at the hands of Yuvraj Singh for nought in the 18th over left the Indians with 17 balls to claim the 31 runs they needed for victory, but those left to bat failed to find the big strokes when it mattered most.

Siddharth Chitnis looked the man most likely to bring the Indians home, hitting a six and a boundary in a quickfire 15 from six balls before he was run out with the second ball of the final over to leave the hosts on 8-183.

Seven runs in four balls was certainly not an insurmountable task for the Indians' tail, but they could not hold their nerve.



22 May, 2008
Fleming fires, Kings fail

Bangalore Royal Challengers picked up only their third Indian Premier League victory with a 14-run win over Chennai Super Kings despite former New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming top-scoring for his side with 45.

Rahul Dravid's Royal Challengers - who already have no chance of reaching the semi-finals - looked to be on their way to their 10th defeat in the competition when they made just 8-126 from their 20 overs after opting to bat first.

But the home team managed only 8-112 in reply, with Anil Kumble claiming 3-14 and Dale Steyn 2-28.

The visitors must have feared the worst after being restricted to what was a new lowest score by a team who have batted out 20 overs in the IPL.

Dravid was the only Bangalore batsman to stick around for any period of time - long enough to notch 47 from 39 balls.

The former India captain received little in the way of support, with Praveen Kumar the next highest scorer among his team-mates with 21.

South African Albie Morkel was the pick of the Chennai bowlers, finishing with figures of 4-32 from his four overs.

Bangalore never looked like building a substantial total.

Openers Jacques Kallis (five) and Shreevats Goswami (10) fell cheaply and the wickets continued to tumble even when Dravid arrived and gave the innings a touch of stability.

Virat Kohli (10), Misbah-ul-Haq (four) and Mark Boucher (17) quickly came and went with Dravid watching on helplessly from the other end.

Dravid perished in the 17th over, caught at cover by Mahendra Singh Dhoni off the bowling of Morkel, with Praveen Kumar and Vinay Kumar (nought) falling in the final over.

Despite a solid opening partnership of 60 between Parthiv Patel and Fleming, the Super Kings never looked comfortable chasing 127.

Fleming top-scored for his team with 45 but, apart from Patel (24) and Suresh Raina (21 not out), nobody else contributed more than four as the hosts slumped to a meagre 112.