Mumbai Indians marched to their fourth Indian Premier League final with a thumping 6-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders in the second qualifier in Bangalore on Friday (May 19).
Rohit Sharma’s decision to bowl first was totally justified as they bowled out the Knight Riders for a paltry 107 in the penultimate over. The Knight Riders once again pinned their hopes on Chris Lynn and Sunil Narine to get a blazing start but it didn’t work against a formidable Mumbai bowling line-up as both were dismissed cheaply. Rohit Sharma’s consistent bowling changes never allowed the Gautam Gambhir-led side to settle down as half of their team returned to the hut with just 31 runs on the board. A 56-run stand between Ishank Jaggi and Suryakumar Yadav helped the team to cross the 100-run mark but the score was never going to pose a challenge against the strong Mumbai Indians batting lineup and they chased down the total with utmost ease in the end.
The Mumbai-based outfit was in a slight spot of bother early on in their chase when they were reduced to 34 for 3 but Rohit Sharma and Krunal Pandya sealed the win with a 54 run partnership. Rohit was dismissed by Nathan Coulter-Nile for 26 but Pandya remained till the end to ensure his side cross the line without any further hiccup. The left-handed batsman remained unbeaten on 45 off just 30 balls.
After the match ended, veteran spinner Harbhajan Singh took to Twitter to congratulate his team for making it to the final. He also had a special word of praise for Karn Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah. Both the bowlers were the architects of the comfortable win with sensational bowling performances. Sharma took 4 for 16 in his quota of 4 overs while Bumrah took 3 for only 7 in three overs.
“Here we come @IPL final 2017 welldone everyone @mipaltan special efforts @Jaspritbumrah93 @sharmakarn03 @KKRiders hardluck tonight.Bless all,” the off-spinner tweeted.
Here we come @IPL final 2017 welldone everyone @mipaltan special efforts @Jaspritbumrah93 @sharmakarn03 @KKRiders hardluck tonight.Bless all
— Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh) May 19, 2017
Mumbai Indians will now aim to become the first side to win three IPL titles when they take on Rising Pune Supergiant in the title-decider on Sunday (May 21).