IPL 2018, MI vs KXIP: Hosts beat Ashwin's men in thriller to stay alive

Mumbai: Mumbai Indians scripted a fantastic comeback to beat Kings XI Punjab by three runs in their IPL encounter here on Wednesday night. Having lost Chris Gayle (18 runs) in the earlier stages, Aaron Finch and Rahul put up a 111-run stand for the third wicket before Finch departed for 46 in the 17^th over, courtesy a Jasprit Bumrah wicket.

Marcus Stoinis’ life at the crease was cut short as Bumrah struck once again, dismissing him in the fifth ball of the same over.

However, the big blow for KXIP came when KL Rahul was dismissed for 94.

This dismissal defined the rest of the match as the visitors struggled to score runs.

This win keeps Mumbai in the hunt for a playoff spot. As a result, both the teams will face a must-win situation as the teams enter the final round of league fixtures.

KXIP 167-4 from 18.3 overs

WICKET! Everything is happening in the final stages of the game, as KL Rahul has just fallen short of his maiden IPL 100, being dismissed for 94. He lofts the ball expecting it to be a six, but finds Ben Cutting at long-off as Bumrah gets his third wicket.

KXIP 149-3 from 16.5 overs

WICKET! Marcus Stoinis has been dismissed for one run as Jasprit Bumrah strikes again. Are these wickets coming better late than never for MI?

KXIP 145-2 from 16.1 overs

WICKET! Aaron Finch falls short of a half-century as he is dismissed for 46 by Jasprit Bumrah.

KXIP 95-1 from 11 overs

FIFTY! It's half-century no 10 for KL Rahul as he reaches the landmark in 36 balls. He has been very good so far. Will he guide KXIP to victory with Aaron Finch at the other end.

KXIP 34-1 from 3.5 overs

WICKET! Mitchell McClenaghan gives MI the breakthrough as he dismisses Chris Gayle for 18, courtesy a catch by Ben Cutting at deep mid-wicket.

MI innings

Kieron Pollard (50 runs) top-scored as Mumbai Indians posted a total of 186-8 in the 50^th IPL match against Kings XI Punjab here on Wednesday.

Evin Lewis (9 runs) and Suryakumar Yadav (27) got MI to a promising start, but the former departed in the fourth over.

Apart from Pollard’s 50, Krunal Pandya’s 23-ball 32 was another innings that gave hope to the hosts.

However, ever since Pollard’s dismissal, the hosts lost Ben Cutting and Hardik Pandya in the space of three overs.

Despite this, the hosts managed to finish on a high, scoring 11 runs in the final over.

MI 170-8 from 18.2 overs

WICKET! Andrew Tye is the man of the moment right now as he scalps his fourth victim, by removing Hardik Pandya for nine runs.

MI 160-7 from 17.4 overs

WICKET! MI lose another one as Ben Cutting finds Axar Patel at deep mid-wicket. Ashwin gets his second victim.

MI 152-6 from 15.3 overs

WICKET! Ravichandran Ashwin strikes as he removes Pollard for 50.

MI 151-5 from 15 overs

FIFTY! Kieron Pollard has got to his fifty with a huge six as he smacks the ball over long-off for a six. He gets to the milestone in just 22 balls as Mi go past 150.

MI 136-5 from 14.2 overs

WICKET! Krunal Pandya is dismissed for 32 as Marcus Stoinis strikes, courtesy a catch by Ankit Rajpoot at short fine.

MI 71-4 from 8.2 overs

WICKET! Yuvraj Singh takes a good catch at mid-on to dismiss captain Rohit Sharma for six, as Ankit Rajpoot gets his first wicket.

MI 59-3 from 5.4 overs

WICKET! It's a hat-trick chance for Andrew Tye as he sees off the in-form Suryakumar Yadav for 27.

MI 59-2 from 5.3 overs

WICKET! MI lose another wicket in the form of Ishan Kishan as he is dismissed for 20.

MI 37-1 from 3.1 overs

WICKET! Evin Lewis is clean bowled by Andrew Tye for nine runs as visitors find a breakthrough.

Toss update

Kings XI Punjab won the toss and elected to field.

The visitors have made two changes, bringing back Yuvraj Sigh and Manoj Tiwary in place of Mayank Agarwal and Karun Nair.

The hosts, meanwhile, have made just one change, replacing JP Duminy with Kieron Pollard.

Here is the confirmed playing XI for both teams:

Preview

It will be a do-or-die game for Mumbai Indians (MI) when they host Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) in the 50^th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) here on Wednesday.

MI have had a mixed season so far this year. Despite having just won two out of their opening six matches, MI secured three wins in a row when they beat KXIP and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) twice, once at home and the other away.

However, their playoff hopes took a hit when they suffered a seven-wicket loss to Rajasthan Royals (RR) here at the Wankhede Stadium a few days back.

Interestingly, KXIP are coming on the back of a 10-wicket loss to Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), in a match where the 2014 finalists collapsed to 88.

In the end, it was Kohli and Parthiv Patel who took RCB home in just 8.1 overs.

Suryakumar Yadav has been in fine form for the defending champions, and he will be eager for more runs in the must-win clash.

An equally-consistent performer has been Mayank Markande, who has produced at crucial times.

Kings XI Punjab: Ravichandran Ashwin(captain),  Lokesh Rahul, Chris Gayle, Karun Nair, Aaron Finch, Marcus Stoinis, Mayank Agarwal, Axar Patel, Andrew Tye, Mohit Sharma, Ankit Rajpoot, David Miller, Manoj Tiwary, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Barinder Sran, Akshdeep Nath, Ben Dwarshuis, Pardeep Sahu, Mayank Dagar, Manzoor Dar, Yuvraj Singh.

Mumbai Indians: , Rohit Sharma(captain),  Suryakumar Yadav, Evin Lewis, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Ben Cutting, Jean-Paul Duminy, Mitchell McClenaghan, Mayank Markande, Jasprit Bumrah, Kieron Pollard, Mustafizur Rahman, Rahul Chahar, Saurabh Tiwary, Pradeep Sangwan, Tajinder Singh, Sharad Lumba, Siddhesh Lad, Aditya Tare, Akila Dananjaya, Anukul Roy, Mohsin Khan, MD Nidheesh, Adam Milne.

When is the match?

The match is scheduled to start at 8 P.M. IST on Wednesday, May 16th.

Where is the match?

The match will take place at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.

Live telecast and timings:

With Star India now acquiring the media rights from Sony Pictures Network India for the upcoming season, the matches will be telecast on various Star Sports channels.

Live streaming:

The matches can be viewed live on Hotstar.com or on the Hotstar app.