Mumbai Indians met the Rising Pune Supergiant at the former’s fortress for the second Maharashtra derby of IPL 10. Before winning six games in a row, Pune were the only blemish in Mumbai’s outing this year, beating the Rohit Sharma-led team in their opening game. Since then, Mumbai had been unstoppable in their winning streak, which has once again been broken by their interstate neighbours.
Rohit’s 3rd IPL half century didn’t suffice as the Pune bowlers were brilliant in their death bowling and the hosts kept losing wickets at regular intervals.
Here are 5 memorable moments from the match that don't fade away, quite like the Axe Signature range of body perfumes.
#1 Sachin Tendulkar turns 44
One of the most captivating moments from the game was Sachin Tendulkar cutting his 44th birthday cake! “Never thought that the whole stadium would be singing for me,” an ecstatic Tendulkar told commentator Matthew Hayden. The Master Blaster cut the cricket-themed cake at his home ground, and exclaimed, “Can’t believe I am 44 today.”
He also went on to talk about his upcoming biopic, Sachin: A Billion Dreams, which will give insights into 44 years of his life, both on and off the field. “We’ve launched the first song of the movie today, and the second one will be out on 2nd May, concluded Tendulkar!
The moment when the God of cricket cut his birthday was quite a memorable moment.
#2 Rahul Tripathi’s promise
Earlier in the season, Rahul Tripathi’s 41-ball 59 got Rising Pune Supergiant off to a terrific start and kept them in cruise control as they chased the 177-run target set by Sunrisers Hyderabad on Saturday. Tripathi took on the leading role out in the middle as he hammered the Hyderabad bowlers to all corners of the park.
The 26-year old, who is playing his first IPL, had got a few good starts in the league already but could not convert them into big scores, getting dismissed with rash shots.His dismissal against the Mumbai Indians was similar to that as he played a rash shot which was a comfortable catch for Kieron Pollard. But his 30-ball 45 gave a brisk start to Pune’s total of 160.
#3 Dhoni and Stokes’ quick wickets
Just two deliveries after Mitchell Johnson cleaned up Stokes for 17 off 12, Jasprit Bumrah took the prized wicket of MS Dhoni who departed for 7. Two wickets in quick succession was the momentum changer in the middle of the innings.
While Ben Stokes has not been able to repay the investment made in him by Pune with his bat, Dhoni was expected to continue his form from the last game in which he won the Man of the Match award for his 61* off 37 balls and won Pune the game against Hyderabad. Unfortunately, he fell to a beauty by Bumrah.
#4 Ben Stokes’ 19th over
If not with the bat, the England all-rounder sealed the deal for Mumbai with his brilliant death bowling in the 19th over. He gave away only 7 runs to build further pressure on Mumbai, who then had to score 17 runs off the final over.
Throughout the match, he kept things tight and bagged 2 wickets and showed up at the big moments. He dismissed Jos Buttler for 17 and Karn Sharma for 11 to keep Pune’s hopes alive. Stokes, the most expensive IPL player, finally earned his riches today as he earned his first Man of the Match of the season.
#5 Captain’s knock
MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma played their 150th IPL game on Monday night. While Dhoni could not make the game a memorable one, the Mumbai skipper made a defiant half-century but not in a winning cause as Mumbai couldn’t withstand Pune’s death bowling and succumbed to a 3 runs loss.
Rohit’s 63 off 39, which saw six fours and three sixes, was the highest individual for the home team. Rohit’s gritty knock kept Mumbai in the hunt till the very end, but they could not complete the job.
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