A hundred partnership between Priyansh Arya and Josh Inglis helped Punjab Kings ease to a seven-wicket win against the Mumbai Indians in Jaipur on Monday, and seal its place in Qualifier 1.
The duo combined for 109 runs in 59 balls for the second wicket, setting up the host’s chase of the 185-run target, which it managed with nine balls to spare.
MI’s new-ball efficacy ensured that openers Arya (62, 35b, 9×4, 2×6) and Prabhsimran Singh do not get the team off to a flier. The latter, in particular, failed to connect his attempted lofted shots, eventually falling to Jasprit Bumrah for less than a run-a-ball. Arya peppered the cover boundary early on before taking on MI’s back-of-a-length approach to provide impetus.
Inglis (73, 42b, 9×4,3×6), at the other end, ensured the side wasn’t bogged down by the accuracy of Mitchell Santner, collecting 19 runs in 11 balls against the left-arm orthodox spinner on the way to his maiden IPL fifty. Santner nabbed both the half-centurions in his second spell, but the damage was done by then.
Earlier, after being put into bat, opener Ryan Rickelton gave the five-time winner a brisk start. The southpaw lofted over-pitched balls down the ground, and adjusted well to pull Arshdeep Singh’s attempted bouncers to the boundary. But MI’s attempts to maximise the PowerPlay was cut short when Marco Jansen used the extra bounce he extracts to remove his compatriot.
The team’s leading scorer, Suryakumar Yadav, injected some pace with three boundaries off Kyle Jamieson. But Harpreet Brar’s removal of Rohit Sharma, after a stunning catch diving forward at long on, set the innings backwards again.
The returning V. Vyshak then delivered a frugal opening spell, conceding just eight in his first two, before prising out both Tilak Varma and Will Jacks to help his side take control.
A 44-run stand between Suryakumar, who eclipsed Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 618 runs in a season for MI with another half century, and skipper Hardik Pandya set up what Mumbai hoped would be a grandstand finish. However, despite a few hits across the fence, Arshdeep’s double strike at the death restricted the visitor to 184, which wasn’t enough at the end.