Nitish Rana and Hardik Pandya produced match-winning performances as Mumbai Indians pulled off a sensational four-wicket victory over Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League in Mumbai on Sunday.
Chasing the visitors' total of 178 for 7, built mainly around Manish Pandey's 47-ball 81, MI got off to a superb start before losing four wickets in a cluster and looked down in the dumps at 119 for five before pulling off the win in 19.5 overs.
Needing 60 runs off the last 24 balls, Nitish Rana came up with fighting 50 off 29 balls before Hardik Pandya finished the job in dramatic fashion, smashing 29 off 11 balls.
It was the first win of the season for Mumbai while Kolkata suffered a painful loss after their 10-wicket win over Gujarat Lions.
MI needed 49 runs off the last three overs and the 18th over by Boult swung the game their way as he was hit for two sixes, one each by Rana and Pandya, conceding 19 runs that brought down the run rate.
Although Rana departed in the penultimate over from Ankit Rajpoot after reaching his 50 in 28 balls, Pandya struck Rajpoot for a six to bring down the equation to eleven from six balls.
He then rode his luck in the final over in which there was a misfield that got him a four and then the dropped catch reprieved him before he hit the winning four.
In the Mumbai run-chase, openers Parthiv Patel (30) and Jos Buttler (28) put on 65 runs before the partnership was broken in the 8th over by Chinaman bowler Kuldeep Singh who trapped left-handed Patel in front.
Mumbai, then, lost the wickets of Buttler and captain Rohit Sharma, who were both declared out leg before off a full toss and a clear inside-edge respectively by Ankit Rajpoot and Sunil Narine.
Both looked not out on TV replays and Sharma, out to the sixth ball he faced, was incensed with the decision of umpire CK Nandan and remonstrated, showing his bat, for which he may face censure from the match referee.
And when Krunal Pandya was caught behind to a leg side deflection, MI were left struggling at 97 for four in the 13th over.
Rana smacked Kuldeep for a six and a four in successive balls while the big-made Kieron Pollard pulled Rajput from wide of stumps over the mid-wicket to keep the hunt on as MI crossed 100.
But the asking rate kept climbing so that MI needed 64 in the last five overs.
Earlier in the day, Manish Pandey scored an unbeaten 81, as Kolkata Knight Riders overcame mid-innings hiccups to post 178/7.
The 27-year-old Karnataka cricketer hit five fours and an equal number of sixes during a 47-ball knock to singlehandedly carry his team to a respectable total.
The Indian batsman beat New Zealand pacer Mitchell McClenaghan to pulp in the final over, producing 23 runs to finish their innings with a flourish.
For Mumbai, Krunal Pandya (3/24) was the most successful bowler.
Put in to bat after losing the toss, the Knights began on a song, as the opening stand of skipper Gautam Gambhir and Australian Chris Lynn took the visitors to 44 at the end of the fourth over.
However, left arm spinner Krunal Pandya brought Mumbai roaring back into the match by removing Gambhir and Robin Uthappa in his very first over.
Gambhir (19) mistimed a lofted shot to a good length ball. Three balls later, it was a sibling conspiracy that saw the end of Uthappa. The wicketkeeper-batsman went for a slog sweep and finished into the hands of Krunal's brother Hardik Pandya.
The double strike reduced the Knights to 48/4, and they managed to reach 59 without any more hiccups at the end of the first powerplay of six overs.
The tourists suffered another reverse soon after, as the confident looking Lynn (32) got out plumb leg before to Jasprit Bumrah, with KKR standing at 67/3 in 7.3 overs.
Pandey got a life at the start of the 12th over, with Patel failing to make the most of the chance. He was then 14, his side 82/3, and Pandya was the unlucky bowler. However, Krunal Pandya's disappointment lasted only four balls, as he teamed up once again with brother Hardik - stationed at long leg - to get rid of Yusuf Pathan (6).
But Pandey made full use of his reprieve with a quickfire 44-run fifth wicket stand in the company of Surya Kumar Yadav.
KKR reached 100 in 13.2 overs, with Pandey taking a single of Mitchell McClenaghan.
Bumrah got the stick in the 16th over, with the Nainital-born right hander picking up a six and a four of consecutive balls.
Yadav (17) fell soon after, but Pandey completed a well-deserved half century off 37 balls with a single.
Visit The Quint’s IPL site for more.
Join The Quint on WhatsApp. Type “JOIN” and send to 9910181818
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)