MI vs KKR HIGHLIGHTS, IPL 2021: Tripathi, Iyer fifties hand Kolkata big win vs Mumbai, jumps to fourth in points table

Hello and welcome to Sportstar's coverage of Match 34 of IPL 2021 between Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders from Abu Dhabi.

Eoin Morgan: "Its been a long time since we've played like this. Baz has taken over for almost two seasons, so the way we are playing is now getting into his style. To hold such a strong Mumbai team, and chase it down in the manner we did gives us confidence. We were trying to fit Iyer into the XI with a lot of talented guys, and its fantastic with the manner he has scored runs. We never put a number on him, on how many games he will get. In the practice games he has gone out to play this way. Baz backs him to the hilt. Just a second game for him but played with full confidence. Sunil and Varun are formidable bowlers. Sunil has been integral in winning KKR championships in the past. Varun is a fresh guy. The first two games in this second phase has been a great template for us to play. There's only one way for us to go in the points table, and that's up."

 

Rahul Tripathi: I really enjoyed and happy that I stayed till the end and got the team home. Obviously the coach tells us to be positive. When you are positive the pressure goes to the bowlers and you just look for runs. It was important to put their spinners under pressure. I felt it was important to get boundaries. The team environment is very positive. We wanted to hit the ground running in the second phase. Definitely very happy.

Rohit Sharma: Few areas (went wrong). We started really well but didn't get enough towards the back end. I thought it was a good pitch, we failed to capitalize on the start we got and we didn't bowl well at the start. I don't want to look into it too much, things can happen and you have to move on. After a good start we had to get small partnerships but we kept losing wickets at regular intervals, it is not easy for new batters to go in and start hitting the ball. It is something that happened in the last game as well and we will address it. It is always there at the back of the mind on where you stand, we are still in the middle of the table, so we have to get back and fight and hopefully get some wins on the trot.

Humbling defeat for Rohit's men. And there's a bit of work to do back at the drawing board. KKR's got off to a menacing start in the second leg. They storm to the fourth spot as MI slides down the table to sixth.

KKR 159/3 in 15.1 overs: Rana goes for the reverse sweep and finds the boundary. KKR thumps MI by 7 wickets for a massive win. They switch places on the points table as KKR finally makes it to the top four. What a win this is for Morgan and Co.

Rohit with the ball. KKR needs 1 to win.

KKR 155/3 in 15 overs: Bumrah to Morgan. OUT! Straight to midwicket.  Bumrah bumps one short and Morgan mistimes the pull and perishes. Tripathi gets back on strike and slides the ball down leg for four.

KKR 147/2 in 14 overs: Milne keeps it straight, attacking the stumps. Morgan's forced to a bit of spot there as he fails to pierce the gaps.  Good over for MI, just the two runs from it, a bit too late in its bid to eye for a win though.

KKR 145/2 in 13 overs: Absolute drubbing for Mumbai! Tripathi crushes Chahar with a massive six over midwicket. Bit of fortune to follow as a thick outside-edge slides past QDK to the third for four. Morgan joins the party with a massive slog over midwicket for six to finish the over.

KKR 128/2 in 12 overs: Bumrah to Iyer. OUT! Cleans him up. The slower one does it again for Bumrah. Slides it on leg and away, Iyer clears his front leg for the heave but ends up missing the ball that drifts away. But what a knock this has been from Iyer, well played champ.

KKR 117/1 in 11 overs: FIFTY FOR VENKATESH IYER! This has been some innings from the young lad. Exceptional flair and maturity as he slams his maiden IPL fifty in his second game. Tripathi miscues one straight up behind the bowler. Chahar makes a run for it but falls short. Just not MI's day, today.

KKR 111/1 in 10 overs: 100 up for KKR! Tripathi drills a fuller one from Bumrah for four and Rohit's face says it all. Nothing's working for them at the moment and their lead bowler gets smoked as well. Bumrah fires in a sharp bouncer that beats everyone and flies to the third man boundary.

Bumrah is back

KKR 97/1 in 9 overs: Solid stuff from Tripathi! Krunal wafts it in and Tripathi makes room to the leg and tonks the ball over long-on from six. He follows up with another heave, this time on towards midwicket and fetches another boundary. MI is being dished away from the contest now.

KKR 85/1 in 8 overs: Sensible stuff from Iyer. Chahar bowls a tad short and Iyer roots back in his crease and opens the face of the bat. Bumrah gives a stern chase but the ball beats him to the third man fence.

Rahul Chahar is in.

KKR 74/1 in 7 overs: Iyer slams another biggie! Krunal floats one in and Iyer nonchalantly steps off the crease and lofts it over deep midwicket for six. What an investment at the top is this young player turning out be!

KKR 63/1 in 6 overs: Tripathi off the blocks! Milne fires one in and Tripathi skims over to his left and laps the ball over the short fine leg fielder for four. Blistering start for KKR in the Powerplay - their best so far this season.

KKR 51/1 in 5 overs: Fifty up for KKR! Iyer has been the moving force behind this start but Krunal does well to keep it tight in his first over, just the three singles from it.

Krunal into the attack

KKR 48/1 in 4 overs: This is fearless batting from KKR, straight of their head coach Bazz' manual. Boult offers a hint of width to Tripathi and he launches a fierce cut to find the backward point fence.

Boult from the opposite end

KKR 40/1 in 3 overs: Bumrah to Gill. OUT! There's the breakthrough! Bumrah foxes Gill with a off-cutter!  Iyer creams Bumrah for two boundaries but Bumrah comes back to do what he does best. Gill fails to read the sly variation as the ball slides in to clip the inside-edge back onto the stumps.  Shubman Gill b Bumrah 13 (9b 1x4 1x6)

Bumrah replaces Boult. Desperate from Rohit.

KKR 30/0 in 2 overs: Iyer goes bang, bang! Milne comes from around the wicket and slides the ball in off the length. Iyer smashes the ball with a fine swivel pull for four. Milne keeps it on length outside off and Iyer carves a beautiful check-drive for four. A bit of fortune to finish the over as a thick outside edge off his blade runs to the boundary.

Milne into the attack

KKR 15/0 in 1 over: Fiery start for KKR! Gill walks into an inswinging delivery from Boult and hammers him over midwicket for a huge six! Sheer disdain on that one. He tucks one fine and gets a single. This time it's Iyer! Boult drags it short and Iyer slams him with a pull for six first ball! Geez, two exquisite shots to get the engine firing for KKR.

Boult up with the new ball.

Back for the chase, Gill and Iyer to open. 

Who's Venkatesh Iyer? Meet KKR's new all-rounder  

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Ferguson to Pollard. OUT! Run-out at the non-striker's! He creams one straight to Morgan at covers and sets off on a single. He's miles short off the crease and Ferguson flicks the bails. Pollard's on his way.  Krunal, on strike. Ferguson slides in a short-slower one and Krunal slams it straight up and GONE! Two in two for Lockie! This has been an excellent over. Saurabh Tiwary ends with a four. Six runs and two wickets from that over. KKR needs 156 to win.

Kieron Pollard run out (Morgan/Ferguson) 21 (15b 2x4 1x6); Krunal Pandya c Iyer b Ferguson 12 (9b, 1x6)

Ferguson up for the final over.

MI 149/4 in 19 overs: Krunal pulls and does it handsomely. Russell fends one short and gets smashed over midwicket for a biggie. Russell comes back in style, drilling the yorker on-point and nearly gets through Pollard.

MI 137/4 in 18 overs: Polly in the groove! Pollard dismisses the short ball from Prasidh with absolute disdain over midwicket for six. Misery for Prasidh as Pollard slices one behind the keeper for four and sneaks in a quick double. Gets even worse for Prasidh as he bowls a no-ball and follows up with two wides. Big over for MI.

MI 121/4 in 17 overs: Ferguson to Kishan. OUT! Straight up and Russell completes a safe catch at mid-on.  Brilliant over from Lockie. Just the two singles in the over and MI is facing some serious heat now. Can Polly and new man Krunal turn it around?

MI 119/3 in 16 overs: MI steps on the pedal. Russell goes short and Kishan slams him over fine leg for a massive six. Pollard then joins the act with a meaty flick to the midwicket fence. Excellent running between the pair as Pollard opens up a gap through covers and finds two runs to complete the over.

Russell's back

MI 106/3 in 15 overs: Prasidh to de Kock. OUT! Slaps straight to midwicket. Hardly got going in the second half of his innings and he attempts a desperate heave to the on-side. No timing whatsoever and the ball lands safely in Narine's hands.  Quinton de Kock c Narine b Prasidh Krishna 55 (42b 4x4 3x6)

MI 101/2 in 14 overs: 100 up for Mumbai and QDK reaches his fifty! He got off to a blistering start before losing his way in the middle for a bit. Lockie hits the deck and de Kock smashes him over midwicket for a boundary to step up again.

Ferguson returns

MI 92/2 in 13 overs: Prasidh to SKY. OUT! Edged and taken! Shoddy from SKY. The pressure gets to him as he plays a half-hearted push to the covers. The ball finds a faint edge and flies to Karthik. Kolkata has done well to recover here as MI goes nearly five overs without a boundary.  Suryakumar Yadav c †Karthik b Prasidh Krishna 5 (10b)

Prasidh is back.

MI 89/1 in 12 overs: Excellent from KKR. Narine slashes the scoring rate as QDK and SKY fall into a brief rut here. They nudge about the inner circle and find three runs in the over.

MI 86/1 in 11 overs: Six singles in the over as SKY and QDK chip about slowly. Varun does well to keep a straight, attacking line and KKR's slowly creeping in through this brief passage of play.

MI 80/1 in 10 overs: Narine to Rohit. OUT! Rohit holes out to long-on.  He attempts for the big slog over the boundary but fails to get the desired timing. The ball was in the slot, meant to be hit. Narine and KKR will feel a bit lucky about this one.  Rohit Sharma c Shubman Gill b Narine 33 (30b 4x4)

Bowlers to dsmiss Rohit most times in IPL: 7 - Narine*, 7 - Mishra, 6 - Vinay, 5 - Bravo

Narine from the opposite end

MI 77/0 in 9 overs: QDK on fire! Russell goes full and instantly pays the price as de Kock drills it through the covers for four. He touches a bit too full once again and this time QDK scoops him over the non-striker for another boundary.

Russell replaces Narine

MI 63/0 in 8 overs: Varun keeps it simple and that tightens the screws just a little bit. Rohit and QDK tread watchfully. Rohit gets a short ball but fails to get his timing right as he attempts to heave the ball over midwicket.

MI 60/0 in 7 overs: Narine stuns Rohit with a quicker one. It hits the deck and keeps its line as Rohit plays for the turn. He's squared up by it as the ball whiffs past the outside edge, close!

Narine returns

MI 56/0 in 6 overs: The de Kock blitz is on! Prasidh slips in a slower one and de Kock picks it up early. He tonks the ball straight over the bowler and finds another six. Not done with that too!  Prasidh drifts to the pads and de Kock flicks it away for another six over square leg. This is some start for MI as it crosses fifty in Powerplay.

Prasidh replaces Varun

MI 40/0 in 5 overs: SHOT, Quinny! Ferguson attempts to surprise de Kock with a fiery bumper but instead gets walloped over backward square leg for a massive six. de Kock reads the length pretty early and has all the time in the world to send it on its way.

Lockie Ferguson into the attack

MI 29/0 in 4 overs: Class from Rohit! Varun is lobbed over mid-off for a fine boundary and Rohit puts him under further pressure with a exquisite sweep for four. And that takes him past 1000 runs vs KKR!

Rohit sharma becomes first batter to smash 1000 runs against an opponent in IPL. Rohit Sharma first to score 1000 runs against one team in IPL

MI 16/0 in 3 overs: Short and smashed away. Narine fends one marginally off the length and Rohit latches onto it and clears the inner-circle on the on-side. The ball finds the fence and Rohit quickly finds a single. de Kock joins the act with a fierce cut that nearly finds the short third fielder but drifts away for another boundary.

Narine replaces Rana. Third over for spin in Powerplay!

MI 9/0 in 2 overs: Pretty watchful from both batters against Varun who deftly slides it in. Rohit keeps himself low on the crease and tucks one towards midwicket for a single. QDK opens his account with a flick to the on-side.

Spin from both ends! Varun into the attack

MI 5/0 in 1 over: Rohit begins with a boundary! A tad loose through the air as Rana loops one in. Rohit languidly laces it through covers for a beautiful four. Rana does well to tighten things up and concedes a lone single in the next five.

WOW! Nitish Rana is up with the new ball. Interesting!

Game On! Rohit Sharma and QDK walk out for Mumbai. Morgan's men take their positions.

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7:15PM IST: Two interesting battles to watch out for in the first half. Rohit vs mystery spinners Chakravarthy and Narine and vs extreme pace in Lockie Ferguson. Furthermore, questions begin to pop up as Hardik misses consecutive matches due to a supposed  "niggle" - a month before the T20WC.

Mumbai Indians XI: Rohit Sharma(c), Quinton de Kock(w), Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Saurabh Tiwary, Krunal Pandya, Adam Milne, Rahul Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult

 

KKR XI: Nitish Rana, Shubman Gill, Rahul Tripathi, Eoin Morgan (capt), Dinesh Karthik (wk), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Lockie Ferguson, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Varun Chakravarthy, Prasidh Krishna

Toss: KKR wins the toss, opts to bowl first Rohit Sharma: Feeling good. Looking forward to the game. Just one change - Anmol misses out. Not a lot to be honest. Certain basics of cricket that was missed, we need to do right. We have spoken about it and hopefully we can execute today. It is a good positive to have but I personally understand that every day is a new day. T20 is a format that you have to be good on that particular day. Eoin Morgan: We are going to bowl first. It worked in the first game and we are going for the same formula. Not getting complacent and sport has the knack to bite you in the back side. We have kept the same side.

 

TOSS TIME! The Hitman is back.

6:49PM IST: Rohit continues his warm-ups with the physio keeping a close watch on him. Well, it's still a bit muddled, folks.

PITCH REPORT: "The breeze is coming in nicely at Abu Dhabi today. It is a new surface. Tonight it is going to be a battle of spin, fast bowlers do pick up wickets here and that is because it is a bit grassy with a slow tennis ball kind of bounce. Generally spin is very hard to score at and they take 40 percent of the wickets. The breeze, size of the boundary; some of the reasons for spinners being successful. Batters might have a tough time" - Danny Morrison and Hayden discuss pitch-side.

6:38PM IST:

Dinesh Karthik: If we can edge over Mumbai today, we will have advantage moving forward. Varun Chakravarthy and I share the same language so we chat from behind the stumps. There's a nice camaraderie with Morgan and me. We think differently, gives him a different perspective. Trent Boult speaks to the broadcaster: Definitely a crucial game. Would be nice to get some momentum and push through in the tournament. We have a good record against KKR but we can't take them lightly. I generally try an pitch the ball up and get some swing. The players, quality of the wickets and all influence my lengths. Bowling to Russell is good fun. He's a talented players and we've done our research and hopefully we can keep him quiet. It's nice to come against your country counterparts, and looking forward to a good match.

 

 

6:35PM IST: Russell is flexing those big biceps out in a hit at the middle. Can he torment MI tonight? Bumrah's had the wood over him, snapping him thrice in nine innings and that'll be an exciting prospect for tonight.

6:24PM IST: Lot cooler today in Abu Dhabi reckons Matthew Hayden. Kolkata has by far looked the best team on show so far in this leg. Mumbai, on the other hand, was way below par in its first match against CSK. KKR will want to improve on its record against Rohit's men, and the time is now.

6:05PM IST: Live visuals on Rohit. He's in his training kit on the sidelines but things still seem a bit unclear regarding his availability.

5:52PM IST: Can MI continue its fine run in Abu Dhabi against its most favoured opposition?

 

5:45PM IST: Numbers Game

The MI vs KKR rivlary is the most one-sided contest in IPL history. MI's 22 wins against Kolkata is the most for a single team against an opponent in the tournament. Rohit Sharma needs 18 runs to become to complete 1000 runs against KKR in IPL. He will become the first batter to reach the feat against a single opposition in IPL history. Rohit also needs three sixes to become the first Indian to smash 400 T20 sixes. Dinesh Karthik (114 catches) needs one catch to overtake MS Dhoni for most catches by a wicketkeeper in the IPL

 

5:37PM IST: Mumbai Indians record in Abu Dhabi

Matches: 9 Won: 6 Loss: 3 HS: 195

Kolkata Knight Riders record in Abu Dhabi

Matches: 12 Won: 7 Loss: 5 HS: 194

5:25PM IST: Here's a look at the MI v KKR head to head in brief

MI vs KKR Head to Head Span: 2008-2021 Matches: 28 Won: MI - 22, KKR - 6 HS (MI) vs KKR: 210 LS (MI) vs KKR: 108 HS (KKR) vs MI: 232 LS (KKR) vs MI: 67

MATCH PREVIEW

It has been one of the most lopsided contests in the Indian Premier League. But, besides planning to continue its domination over Kolkata Knight Riders, with a 22-6 head-to-head record in its favour, the Mumbai Indians camp would be fretting over the availability of two of its key members — captain Rohit Sharma and all-rounder Hardik Pandya.

Neither the stand-in skipper Kieron Pollard nor head coach Mahela Jayawardene spelt out what kind of “niggles” were the two carrying.

Boult stays guarded

Trent Boult, the left-arm pacer, continued the trend by remaining guarded about the duo’s injury.

 

“They are both recovering very well. In terms of their selection for the next game, I’m not too sure what’s going on there. But day by day, they are improving,” Boult said on Thursday.

“They are obviously two vital players in the XI for Mumbai. And we are desperate to get them back.”

KKR, meanwhile, would be looking forward to maintain its momentum after rolling over Royal Challengers Bangalore. Should the KKR bowling unit repeat its heroics against an under-pressure MI batting line-up, it can hope for a rare victory against the five-time champion.

WHERE TO WATCH - MI vs KKR - Match 34 of IPL 2021 The IPL 2021 match between Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders will be aired live on Star Sports channels - Star Sports 1, Star Sports 1 HD, Star Sports 3 and Star Sports 3 HD. The online streaming will be available on Hotstar. IPL 2021 Phase 2 Full Squads Mumbai Indians Team Squad Rohit Sharma (C), Quinton de Kock, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult, Rahul Chahar, Aditya Tare, Anukul Roy, Anmolpreet Singh, Chris Lynn, Dhawal Kulkarni, Jayant Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Roosh Kalaria, Saurabh Tiwary, Adam Milne, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Piyush Chawla, Jimmy Neesham, Yudhvir Charak, Arjun Tendulkar, Marco Jansen Kolkata Knight Riders Team Squad Shubman Gill, Venkatesh Iyer, Andre Russell, Nitish Rana, Rahul Tripathi, Eoin Morgan(c), Dinesh Karthik(w), Sunil Narine, Lockie Ferguson, Varun Chakravarthy, Prasidh Krishna, Harbhajan Singh, Shakib Al Hasan, Tim Southee, Ben Cutting, Karun Nair, Pawan Negi, Kuldeep Yadav, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Sheldon Jackson, Sandeep Warrier, Tim Seifert, Rinku Singh, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Shivam Mavi, Vaibhav Arora