IPL 2017, DD vs MI: Kieron Pollard's onslaught against Amit Mishra is SK Turning Point of the Match

During the course of the last five games, Kieron Pollard has mostly batted at number five and even lower on the odd occasion. However, Mumbai Indians’ think tank pulled off a calculated gamble in promoting the hard-hitter to number three in the clash against Delhi Daredevils at the Feroz Shah Kotla.

Pollard rose to the occasion and responded to the team management’s call by putting on a show of belligerent batting. His onslaught went a long way in enabling the visitors to register a massive total that eventually proved to be far beyond Delhi’s reach.

While Mumbai became the first team to seal a place in the playoffs this season, the Daredevils were left facing the embarrassment of being bowled out for just 66 and consequently succumbed to the worst defeat in IPL history (in terms of runs). Here’s how the events transpired in the match.

Simmons and Parthiv set the platform

Ahead of the crucial game, Delhi received a massive boost with the experienced Zaheer Khan returning from injury to take over the captaincy from stand-in option Karun Nair. The left-arm seamer won the toss and looked to have a crack at Mumbai’s batting lineup.

Lendl Simmons came in place of Jos Buttler and straightaway sought to form a productive opening combination with Parthiv Patel. Zaheer led from the front with a couple of tight overs even as the two batsmen looked to get themselves in before playing extravagant shots.

Kagiso Rabada’s second over helped them break the shackles. Simmons capitalised on the extra pace and laid into the misdirected short deliveries on offer. Parthiv came into his own when Pat Cummins was introduced into the attack. At the end of the Power Play, the scorecard read 60/0.

The first wicket partnership was broken by the wily Amit Mishra. Luring Parthiv with a well-flighted one, the leg-spinner invited the southpaw to dance down the track. The cleverly disguised googly did the trick as Rishabh Pant completed the stumping.

Pollard lays into Mishra

While many would have expected skipper Rohit Sharma or the in-form Nitish Rana to come in at the fall of the wicket, Pollard strode into the middle instead. The 29-year-old did not take too long to make his intentions clear.

In a bid to entrap the Caribbean journeyman, Mishra imparted a more than necessary amount of flight. However, Pollard’s eyes lit up and the ball was dispatched into the stands on the back of ruthless muscle-power. He repeated the process in the same over. In spite of not timing his shot properly, the right-hander managed to evade the clutches of the fielder manning the long-off boundary.

Meanwhile, at the other end, Simmons continued to showcase his skills by getting into the groove. Be it the off-cutter from Cummins or a short delivery from Corey Anderson, he sent the ball flying past the fence. His enterprising knock came to an end when he played one shot too many without taking the field placements into account.

But Pollard countered the fall of the vital wicket by tearing Mishra apart. He plundered two more sixes off the wrist-spinner to keep Mumbai on track for a sizeable total. From the 37 runs conceded by the 34-year-old, 24 came off just four deliveries.

Innovative against seam

As the death overs loomed and the seamers returned into the equation, Pollard improvised to make mincemeat of their plans. He unfurled a late attempt at a scoop shot off Zaheer and watched the ball sail over the strategically placed short third man fielder.

The shot attracted the attention of Sanjay Manjrekar in the commentary box. After trading barbs at each other over an issue arising out of miscommunication, the former Indian cricketer sent his colleagues into fits of laughter by referring to the Trinidadian’s ‘range’.

A couple more boundaries against the likes of Rabada and Cummins propelled Pollard to his second half-century of this IPL edition. With Hardik Pandya adding a few lusty blows, Pollard remained unbeaten on 63 from 35 deliveries. In sharp contrast to the earlier half of the game, Delhi could barely scrape past Pollard’s score let alone Mumbai’s formidable total.