Mumbai Indians' all-rounder Hardik Pandya may have been in news for all wrong reasons off the field, but when playing, he knows how to make his cricket talk.
On Wednesday aginst Chennai Super Kings, he showed why he is India's best all-rounder by smashing an unbeaten 8-ball 25, which included three sixes and a hit to the fence. And while defending their total, he picked up three for 20, with captain MS Dhoni's wicket as icing on the cake.
He was largely instrumental in MI reaching a total of 170, while they appeared to be headed for below 150 total.
Chasing a target of 171, CSK were restricted by Mumbai Indians to 133 for eight in 20 overs during their IPL clash at the Wankhede Stadium here on Wednesday.
Earlier, Kieron Pollard put to rest all the debate about why Mumbai Indians have retained him despite him not scoring big with the bat since last season. Every time Pollard failed to see his team to victory, or make a sizeable contribution, his place in the team was questioned.
On Wednesday, after scoring a useful 17* off 7 deliveries at the Wankhede, he proved his worth by taking an astonishing catch to dismiss Suresh Raina, who was beginning to let loose in pursuit of a challenging target.
Pollard used his six-foot-five-inch frame to the optimum, timing his jump at the point boundary to pluck single-handed the white ball that was heading for a certain six. After catching it right-handed well above his head, Pollard rolled over, still clutching the ball tight, quickly got on his feet and pumped his chest facing the vociferous spectators at the Vijay Merchant Pavilion as his team-mates rushed towards him in celebration.
With Raina gone and CSK at 33/3 in 5 overs, Pollard has already won the match for Mumbai Indians, which eventually was by 37 runs, giving CSK their first defeat this season. This was MI's second win in four matches.
Only in the second over did Pollard use his height to remove Shane Watson, giving Sri Lankan veteran Lasith Malinga his first IPL wicket in two years. But for Pollard, Watson's fearsome cut was a sure four. Pollard jumped to tap the ball down with both hands and catch in the second attempt.
Even as CSK looked to stay in the match through Kedar Jadhav and MS Dhoni, and their 54-run fourth wicket stand, the bounce that the Wankhede strip offered their quicks left MI victors. The runs were not coming easily in the middle-overs, and despite Dhoni's ability to finish matches, CSK could not find his magic touch on the day. The effective MI medium-pacers of Malinga, Hardik Pandya and debutant Jason Behrendorff picked up wickets regularly to deny CSK.
Australian left-arm pacer Behrendorff, fresh from Australia's ODI duty in Dubai against Pakistan, dismissed Ambati Rayudu with a beauty in his first over in IPL, the ball rising after hitting the deck on way to the gloves of Quinton de Kock.
Earlier, put in to bat, Mumbai Indians did not look to even reach 140. That they managed 170/5 – the fourth straight match that they reached 170 this season was possible due to merciless hitting by the sixth-wicket duo of Hardik and Pollard and Suryakumar Yadav's 43-ball 59.
The pair raised unbroken 45 runs in the last two overs including five sixes, making the otherwise impressive Shardul Thakur and Dwayne Bravo look less than ordinary. They deserved to be punished for the short and full tosses they delivered, not to take away credit from Hardik, who dug out an almost yorker-length from Bravo for a maximum over mid-wicket.
Before the Hardik-Pollard last two-over carnage, No. 3 Suryakumar Yadav and No. 5 Krunal Pandya formed the backbone of the Mumbai Indians total. They shared 62 for the fourth wicket in the middle overs, bailing the hosts from 50/3 in the ninth over. Their partnership and the Hardik-Pollard assault later saw MI raise 77 in the last five overs.
After a cautious start that saw their highest scorer this season, South African Quinton de Kock fell to a loose shot in the innings' third over, Mumbai Indians came into their elements through the local boy Yadav. While only nine were scored off the first three overs, Yadav began to play his strokes without wasting much time as rival captain MS Dhoni persisted with his opening bowlers Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur for the first five overs.
Yadav kickstarted the hurried flow of boundaries, the straight drive against his Mumbai Ranji Trophy team-mate Thakur standing out. Yadav raced to 24 from 15 balls with five fours before the field spread.
While there was nothing much to choose from between the two teams at the end of the 15 overs – MI 93/3, CSK 94/5 – the firepower that MI's lower half provided was missing in CSK's.