IPL 2021: Orange Cap and Purple Cap standings after MI vs CSK match (updated)

Punjab Kings (PBKS) skipper KL Rahul remains in possession of the IPL 2021 Orange Cap with 331 runs under his belt. There was no change at the top of the Purple Cap list either, with Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) seamer Harshal Patel enjoying a 4-wicket lead with 17 scalps to his name.

Faf du Plessis smashed his fourth consecutive fifty of the season against the Mumbai Indians (MI) tonight, and moved up to 2nd in the IPL 2021 Orange Cap list. The 36-year-old has now scored 320 runs at a staggering average of 64 from 7 games so far.

His teammate Moeen Ali stroked a 36-ball 58 and restored his place in the top 10 of the batting charts. The CSK No. 3 occupies 10th spot after extending his IPL 2021 tally to 206 runs at a strike rate of 157.25.

Rohit Sharma moved up to 5th in the IPL 2021 Orange Cap list after managing 35 off 24 balls against CSK. The MI skipper remains the sole representative for the defending champions in the elite list, having scored 250 runs at an average of 35.72 thus far.

Leg-spinner Rahul Chahar is the only MI bowler in the top 10 of the IPL 2021 Purple Cap list [Credits: IPL]

In the IPL 2021 Purple Cap list, MI leg-spinner Rahul Chahar occupies 3rd position despite going wicketless tonight. He has picked up 11 wickets so far and remains one of only two spinners in the top 10. CSK have two bowlers among the top wicket-takers this season in Sam Curran and Deepak Chahar.

While Chahar couldn’t take a wicket with the new ball, Curran registered his best figures for the season – 3 for 34 – to soar up to 6th position on the IPL 2021 bowling charts. The 22-year-old has now scalped 9 wickets in 7 games. Chahar has taken one less, with 7 of those coming in the powerplay overs.

The action now shifts to another double-header Sunday, as the Rajasthan Royals (RR) take on the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Delhi and the Punjab Kings (PBKS) lock horns with the Delhi Capitals (DC) in Ahmedabad later in the evening.

DC opener Shikhar Dhawan will aim to wrest the IPL 2021 Orange Cap from KL Rahul, who is just 20 runs ahead of the southpaw. Meanwhile, SRH leggie Rashid Khan will look to add few more wickets to his kitty and break into the top 3 of the Purple Cap list.

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MI’s Kieron Pollard singlehandedly beats CSK in last-ball thriller

Kieron Pollard smashed his highest IPL score to take MI home tonight [Credits: IPL]

Kieron Pollard’s all-round brilliance helped the Mumbai Indians (MI) beat the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by four wickets in Match 27 of IPL 2021 at the Feroz Shah Kotla in New Delhi on Saturday (May 1).

There was no change in the points table though, with CSK remaining static at the top of the IPL 2021 table with five wins from seven matches. MI are in fourth position, having won a game less.

After skipper Rohit Sharma won the toss and opted to field first, fast bowler Trent Boult gave MI the ideal start by removing the in-form Ruturaj Gaikwad (4 off 4) off just the fourth ball of the innings. But Faf du Plessis – the other opener currently enjoying a purple patch – and Moeen Ali launched a ferocious counter-attack to push MI on to the back foot.

The former Proteas captain brought up his fourth consecutive half-century, while the English all-rounder raised his first for the season as the duo put on 108 runs off just 61 balls to set CSK up for a huge total.

Even though Jasprit Bumrah got rid of Moeen Ali for a fluent 36-ball 58, there was no disruption in the Super Kings’ momentum. With all the bowlers being taken to the cleaners, Rohit threw the ball to Kieron Pollard. And it proved to be a masterstroke.

The big-hitting West Indian worked his magic with the ball by removing Du Plessis (50 off 28) and Suresh Raina (2 off 4) off consecutive deliveries. He almost sent back Ravindra Jadeja in the following over, only to be ruled otherwise by DRS.

CSK’s second half of the innings followed the same template as the first. After a flurry of wickets, Ambati Rayudu and Ravindra Jadeja got together and took the game away from MI’s grasp. With Rayudu (72* off 27) being the aggressor, Jadeja (22* off 22) played the perfect ally as they took all the MI bowlers apart. Notably, Bumrah recorded his most expensive IPL spell, conceding 56 runs from four overs.

The fifth-wicket stand surged to 102 runs off just 48 balls, with 82 of those runs coming in the final five overs as CSK registered their highest total against the reigning champions – 218 for 4.

In reply, openers Rohit Sharma and Quinton de Kock were swift to get out of the blocks and kept MI in the hunt for the mammoth target. They forged a 71-run opening stand before Rohit (35 off 24) fell in Shardul Thakur’s (1 for 56) opening over. But one led to two, and two became three, as MI suddenly found themselves precariously placed at 81 for 3 in the 10th over.

But they still had Kieron Pollard in their dugout. The man, who threatened to take the game away from CSK with the ball, now killed it with the willow. The 33-year-old started attacking from the word go, smashed it to all parts of the ground, and in no time notched up the fastest fifty of this season off 17 balls.

The defending champions seemed to be in total control of the chase, when Sam Curran (3 for 34) pulled things back by removing the Pandya brothers and James Neesham in his final two overs.

However, with 16 runs required of the final over, and Lungi Ngidi (0 for 62) charging in, Kieron Pollard (87* off 34) kept his calm, hogged the strike and eventually sealed the win off the final delivery.