Proteas wicket-keeper batsman Ryan Rickelton spearheaded the chase with a magnificent half-century as Mumbai Indians beat the Kolkata Knight Riders by eight wickets on Monday night.
Rickelton smashed 62 off 41 balls, an innings laced with five sixes, as Mumbai recorded their first win of this year’s Indian Premier League.
Rickleton, who is playing in the IPL for the first time, has had a stellar year thus far, shining for the Proteas in all formats – including scoring a double century in the New Year’s Test against Pakistan – while also helping MI Cape Town to win the SA20 League.
The pace and bounce of the Wankhede Stadium pitch – which is similar to the surface at the Wanderers in his hometown of Johannesburg – certainly suits his free-flowing style. And Rickelton showed his class with a top knock that is going to set him up nicely for the rest of the tournament.
“Chatting to the guys back in South Africa about the Wankhede … it’s probably why I’m here. It also does a bit, which is challenging in its own right, but I’m looking forward to get back out there and try to maximise the pace on offer,” Rickelton said after the match.
Rickelton says the atmosphere at the stadium was incredible and he enjoyed every moment.
“It’s unbelievable. I’ve never been to the Wankhede … to see the whole stadium turn blue. To play alongside Hardik (Pandya), Rohit (Sharma) and Sky (Suryakumar Yadav), and to see how much they are adored here, is special. I’m enjoying myself here and it’s a special place to be.”
Rookie medium pacer Ashwani Kumar set up the win with a magnificent performance with the ball on debut.
Kumar’s 4/24 – and an overall disciplined bowling performance – restricted champions Kolkata to a modest total of 116, which Mumbai chased down with more than seven overs to spare.
“There was some pressure in the beginning but the team atmosphere put me at ease,” Kumar told broadcasters during the innings break.
Playing their first home match of the year, Mumbai dominated from the word go with New Zealand pacer Trent Boult claiming opener Sunil Narine’s stumps in the very first over of the match.
Narine’s in-form batting partner Quinton de Kock was next to go, out caught trying to loft Deepak Chahar.
Captain Ajinkya Rahane followed soon after, slicing a wide and full ball from Kumar to the deep backward point fielder after scoring 11 off seven deliveries.
Aggressive middle-order batter Venkatesh Iyer struggled to get off the blocks, falling for three from nine balls.
The left-handed Angkrish Raghuvanshi batted fluently for his 26 runs but failed to carry on, leaving the visitors reeling at 45/5 in seven overs.
Despite some resistance by impact substitute Manish Pandey (19 off 14) and the attacking Rinku Singh (17 off 14), Kolkata never recovered.
A late flurry by Ramandeep Singh (22 off 12) helped Kolkata reach the three-figure mark but it was too little too late, with the innings folding in the 17th over.
In contrast, Mumbai got off to a brisk start but India batter Rohit Sharma missed out once again, managing only 13 off 12 balls.
England all-rounder Will Jacks, who came in to replace Sharma, pulled his second ball over fine leg for a six, extinguishing any hopes of a Kolkata comeback.
Jacks (16 off 17) and Rickelton put together a partnership of 45 runs to take Mumbai closer to the target.
T20 specialist Suryakumar Yadav’s quickfire 27 off just nine balls ensured Mumbai crossed the line without further hiccups.
Additional reporting by AFP
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