IPL 8: MI keep playoff hopes alive with 5-run win over KKR

Mumbai: Mumbai Indians stayed on course for a play-off berth after pulling off a narrow five-run win over defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders in a nerve-wracking last-over IPL thriller here on Thursday.

The hosts first recovered from a poor start of 79 for four to post 171-4 following a whirlwind knock of 61 not out in 31 balls from Hardik Pandya.

Chasing the score, Knight Riders lost wickets at regular intervals after a bright start of 45 but still were in the hunt for a win and a place in the play-off when they needed 12 runs in the last over bowled by Kieron Pollard.

However, the big-built West Indian conceded only six runs after taking the wicket of danger man Yusuf Pathan who was caught behind for 52 off the first ball to help Mumbai cross the finish line at the Wankhede Stadium.

MI thus took their points tally to 14 with one last away game left to play against Sun Risers Hyderabad on May 17, while Kolkata have 15 with one match in hand against Rajasthan Royals to be played at the Cricket Club of India's Brabourne Stadium here on May 16.

Earlier Pandya, who came after the fall of captain Rohit Sharma, slammed 2 sixes and 8 fours in his 31-ball whirlwind knock and added an unbroken 92 runs in 51 balls for the fifth wicket with Pollard (33 not out) to resurrect Mumbai after they were reduced to 79-4 in 11.4 overs.

Put into bat, MI were put on the back foot within the power play period when they lost both openers Parthiv Patel (21) and Lendl Simmons (14).

After the rare failure of the consistent Ambati Rayudu that left MI at a difficult 47 for 3, captain Sharma and West Indian Pollard did some repair work but the dismissal of the former for a 21-ball 30 put the brakes again.

But Pandya took the KKR bowling by the scruff and smashed the ball around. He struck Umesh Yadav for four fours in the 17th over before reaching his half century with a six in 25 balls.

Former Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan, returning to the tournament after a month's gap because of national duty, did the star turn for the defending champions with a two-wicket haul for 22 with his crafty left arm spin.

South African Morne Morkel (1 for 27) and Narine (1 for 38) were the other wicket takers. Knight Riders conceded 72 runs in the last five overs.

Chasing the MI total, Knight Riders were off to a sound start with in-form openers, captain Gautam Gambhir (38) and Robin Uthappa (25) putting on 45 runs before the latter was sent back by off-spinner Harbhajan Singh.

A lap shot by Uthappa went straight to fine leg fielder Malinga, a ball after the batsman had clubbed the off-spinner over mid wicket for a big six.

In the same over of Harbhajan, a suicidal attempt for a single saw Manish Pandey run out by a direct hit at the striker's end stumps from fine leg by Lendl Simmons to leave the Knight Riders at 46 for 2 within the power play.

A useful 42-run partnership ensued between Gambhir and Yusuf Pathan, who were quiet initially before opening out, to lift Knight Riders to 74 after ten overs.

Gambhir, who was batting without any trouble, was dropped by Pandya off left-arm spinner Jagadisha Suchith who had to wait only till the next ball to reap his reward as he cleaned up the rival captain.

Yusuf Pathan then added 30 runs with Shakib Al Hasan before the former Bangladesh captain was caught pulling pacer Vinay Kumar and ten runs later Andre Russell was dismissed by Malinga via a wide ball that he edged behind to leave Knight Riders at 128 for five.

Suryakumar Yadav threatened for a brief with a couple of boundary hits before perishing in the deep off a flick shot against McClenaghan in his death-over spell.

Later, needing 21 to win off the last 12 balls, Yusuf Pathan hammered Malinga for a huge six over mid wicket off the fifth ball of the penultimate over to bring down the target to 12 in the last over and also complete his fifty in 35 balls.

But his dismissal off the first ball of the last over ended KKR's hopes as Piyush Chawla was unable to score the required runs.