IPL 2019: Match 7, RCB vs MI, Review – The game ends on a controversial note as Mumbai emerge triumphant

The seventh match of IPL 2019 between RCB and MI was quite a humdinger. Fortunes kept swinging between both the teams right till the end and left the fans on the edge of their seats. However, it was the Mumbai Indians who held onto their nerves in extreme pressure situations and got over the line.

Yet, the match ended on quite a controversial note. RCB needed 7 runs to win the match off the last ball. They had an opportunity to take the game into the super over but Shivam Dube failed to clear the ropes. However, the final ball of the match bowled by Lasith Malinga was a no-ball. The Sri Lankan pacer clearly stepped over the line and the umpire didn’t pick it. It was too late by the time the replays spotted it and MI was declared the winner.

One helluva cameo from Hardik Pandya overshadows the other knocks

Rohit Sharma got the call wrong at the toss and his side was put into bat first. Strategically, RCB had a great advantage right at the start since chasing is a lot easier at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. But, the Mumbai openers got the team off to a good start. 54 runs were scored for the opening wicket before Quinton de Kock tried a cheeky reverse sweep and got bowled for 23 runs.

Rohit, though, played a really good knock and was looking set for a big knock. But after he scored 48 runs, he miscued one off the bowling of Umesh Yadav and holed out at long-on. Suryakumar Yadav added a valuable 38 off 24 balls while Yuvraj Singh smashed three consecutive sixes off the bowling of Yuzvendra Chahal. Just like Rohit, these two also failed to capitalise on the start and got out at the wrong time.

Things slowed down in the middle overs and Mumbai lost a few quick wickets before Hardik Pandya got started off with his exploits. He smocked three sixes and two fours towards the end to take MI to an above-par total. Pandya’s unbeaten 32 which came off 12 balls took Mumbai to 187/8 in 20 overs.

AB de Villiers fails to take his team through

For RCB, Moeen Ali opened the innings with Parthiv Patel in this game instead of Virat Kohli. However, the English all-rounder was unfortunate in the game as a direct hit inflicted by Rohit Sharma brought an end to his innings. Parthiv Patel looked good with a 22-ball 31 but was bowled by Mayank Markande as he failed to pick up a googly.

Skipper Virat Kohli, as usual, looked quite reliable. He got off to a flyer but slowed down slightly after the conclusion of the powerplay. He kept chipping in with regular boundaries and dealt well against Jasprit Bumrah initially. But ultimately, Bumrah was the winner of this battle as he picked the wicket of the RCB captain. Kohli scored 46 off 31 balls before he was dismissed.

The required run rate was really high when Kohli got out. They needed something special to get over the line and it was the ever-reliable AB de Villiers who rose up to the occasion in the crunch situation. However, he failed to get his team over the line. He remained unbeaten on 70 but RCB fell short of the target by a mere 6 runs.

Brief Scores:

MI: 187/8 in 20 overs (Rohit Sharma 48, Suryakumar Yadav 38, Yuzvendra Chahal 4/38)

RCB: 181/5 in 20 overs (AB de Villiers 70*, Virat Kohli 46, Jasprit Bumrah 3/20)

Result: Mumbai Indians won the match by 6 runs.

Man of the Match:

Points Table:

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