IPL 2017, RPS vs MI: Mumbai Indians’ road to final

Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Mumbai, April 9

It was a clash between two titans of IPL, and it was interesting to see who emerges as the winner. Manish Pandey’s quickfire 47-ball 81 had powered Kolkata Knight Riders to 178. When it seemed an uphill task for the hosts, batsman Nitish Rana’s fifty and Hardik Pandya’s cameo of 29 helped MI register their first win of the season.

Mumbai Indians vs Sunrisers Hyderabad, Mumbai, April 12

After a comfortable victory over Kolkata, Mumbai Indians registered another easy win over defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad. Chasing a total of 158, MI chased down the target with wase and with four wickets remaining. It was yet another Nitish Rana show at Wankhede stadium

Mumbai Indians vs Royal Challengers Bangalore, Bangalore, April 14

After opting to field, Mumbai Indians’ bowlers bowled according to the plan and everything was working for the visitors as they managed to hold the star-studded Bangalore to a mere total of 142. In reply, Mumbai were off to a disappointing start as their entire middle order was back in the hut with just seven runs on board. However, it was Kieron Pollard and Krunal Pandya partnership which brought them back from the face of defeat and they registered a four-wicket win.

Mumbai Indians vs Gujarat Lions, Mumbai, April 16

It was yet another comfortable win for Mumbai Indians when they beat Gujarat Lions by six wickets. The Rohit Sharma-led side rode on Nitish Rana’s brilliant fifty and a well supported captain’s knock of 40 to continue their unbeaten run.

Mumbai Indians vs Kings XI Punjab, Indore, April 20

Chasing a mammoth of 198 set by Kings XI Punjab after Hashim Amla’s maiden IPL century, Mumbai Indians showed why they are considered to be one of the best batting side while chasing as opener Jos Buttler (77) and Nitish Rana (62) guided MI to nine-wicket victory in Indore. Buttler first forged a 81-run stand with Pathiv Patel followed by a 83-run partnership with Rana.

Mumbai Indians vs Delhi Daredevils, Mumbai, April 22

Defending a total of 142 against Delhi Daredevils, Mitchell McClenaghan’s 3/24 helped hosts to restrict DD to 128 and register a 12-run win at Wankhede stadium. Last time MI had manage to defend a total below 150 was back then in 2013.

Mumbai Indians vs Rising Pune Supergiant, Mumbai, April 24

Mumbai Indians discomfort against Rising Pune Supergiant didn’t seem to end when they fall short of three runs to beat the Steve Smith-led side at their fortress. Skipper Rohit Sharma was the lone soldier standing as the wickets from the other end kept falling.

Mumbai Indians vs Gujarat Lions, Rajkot, April 29

The match between Gujarat Lions and Mumbai Indians witnessed the first super-over of the season as both the teams finished for 153 in their 20 overs. But it was Jasprit Bumrah’s clinical performance with the ball which helped them earn two crucial points. Parthiv Patel was the top scorer as he smashed nine fours and a six to score his another fifty plus score.

Mumbai Indians vs Royal Challengers Bangalore, Mumbai, May 1

It was evident that the Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore were not having the best season so far. And to a certain extent Mumbai did use this as their trump card. Ab de Villiers (43) and Pawan Negi (35) had powered Bangalore’s total to 162 and now it was upto their bowlers to extract a win from there. But skipper Rohit Sharma stood in between and helped his side Mumbai eke out five-wicket win at home.

Mumbai Indians vs Delhi Daredevils, Delhi, May 6

Even Mumbai Indians had not imagined that they will register their highest victory against Delhi Daredevils, who had chased down a mammoth of 200 against Gujarat Lions. After a great show put up by Kieron Pollard, Mumbai’s total was 212 and DD faced an uphill task in a must-win game. Spinners Harbhajan Singh and Karn Sharma claimed three wickets each and helped MI beat Delhi by 126 runs.

Mumbai Indians vs Sunrisers Hyderabad, Hyderabad, May 8

After a successful winning run, Mumbai suffered a seven-wicket defeat against defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad. Siddharth Kaul and Bhuvneshwar Kumar restricted MI to 138. With just 138 runs on board, MI bowlers had very little chance to defend their total as Shikhar Dhawan and Moises Henriques led Hyderabad to seven-wicket win and chase down total in just 18.2 overs.

Mumbai Indians vs Kings XI Punjab, Mumbai, May 11

Mumbai Indians suffered their fourth defeat of the season against Kings XI Punjab as they fall short of seven runs while chasing a mammoth of 230. Wriddhiman Saha’s 93 and Glenn Maxwell’s quickfire 47 helped the Kings XI post a 200 plus score and followed by some disciplined bowling by Sandeep Sharma and Mohit Sharma restricted MI to 223.

Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders, May 13

Mumbai Indians were back to winning ways with a nine-run victory over Kolkata Knight Riders. KKR had lost their previous match against Mumbai, and could feel the heat as they failed to chase down the target of 174 and were restricted to 164 in 20 overs.

Mumbai Indians vs Rising Pune Supergiant, Qualifier 1, Mumbai, May 16

MS Dhoni special and a well supported knock by Manoj Tiwary put Rising Pune Supergiant ahead of the two-times IPL champions. Opting to field, Mumbai took command as Pune suffered a top order collapse and were reduced to 89/3 after 12 overs. But what followed later was something that changed the course of the game as Dhoni and Tiwary hammered 41 runs from the last 12 balls to take Pune’s total to 162. In reply, hosts were restricted to 142 after an excellent start provided by Parthiv Patel (52). The 17-year old Washington Sundar was the pick of the bowlers as he stunned MI batsmen with his quality spin bowling. He returned with the bowling figures of 3/16. He was well supported by Shardul Thakur, as the medium pacer claimed three wickets for 37 runs.

Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Qualifier 2, Bangalore, May 19

After finishing at the top of the table, Mumbai were fortunate enough as they had another chance to make it into the final of IPL 10. Facing Kolkata Knight Riders, who were looking for their third IPL title too, it was a easy and comfortable win for the Rohit Sharma-led side. Spiner Karn Sharma was so impressive with his bowling as he chipped in to claim four Knight Riders’ wickets. The Gautam Gambhir-led side were restricted to 107 after Ishank Jaggi and Suryakumar Yadav showed some resistance before they too were sent back in the hut. Krunal Pandya’s 45 later saw Mumbai march to their fourth IPL final and set clash with Rising Pune Supergiant for the fourth time in the season.