Mumbai Indians 209-7 (20 ov)
Simmons 59, Chand 58, Rohit 42; Wiese 4-33
Royal Challengers Bangalore 191-7 (20 ov)
Wiese 47, De Villiers 41, Abdulla 20; Harbhajan 3-27
Mumbai Indians won their first Indian Premier League match this season after beating Royal Challengers Bangalore by 18 runs in their own backyard on Sunday.
Bangalore captain Virat Kohli won the toss and sent the visitors in, a decision that backfired as they posted a mammoth 209 for seven in their 20-over quota.
No one batsman dominated the proceedings, instead several batsmen contributing significantly to the team total. Lendl Simmons (59) and Unmukt Chand (58) both scored fifties while Rohit Sharma, the captain, hit a quickfire 42 that changed the complexion of the game.
Bangalore, in reply, failed to get any momentum going and lost wickets at regular intervals. There was a minor recovery, however, as South Africa captain AB de Villiers scored 41. But the hero for Bangalore was little-known David Wiese, also from South Africa, who scored 47 runs to make a match of it until the final over.
It was too little, too late for Bangalore as they eventually finished on 191 for seven.
Rahane and Watson guide Rajasthan Royals to easy win over Chennai Super Kings
Chennai Super Kings 156-4 (20 ov)
Bravo 62 not out, Smith 40; Morris 1-19
Rajasthan Royals 157-2 (18.2 ov)
Rahane 76 not out, Watson 73; Jadeja 1-29
Man of the match Ajinkya Rahane (Rajasthan)
Rajasthan Royals cantered to their fifth straight Indian Premier League victory over fancied Chennai Super Kings in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad on Sunday.
Chennai won the toss and opted to bat first but could not get any momentum going as they struggled to a below par score of 156 for four. If you took Dwayne Bravo’s unbeaten 66 out late in the innings out of the scorecard, Chennai would possibly have done far worse.
It was a thorough performance from all the Rajasthan bowlers, especially Chris Morris who gave away just 19 runs from his four-over spell. He also took the important wicket of Suresh Raina.
Bravo’s 36-ball knock turned out to be inadequate as Rajasthan chased down the target with 10 balls to spare and, more crucially, with the loss of just two wickets.
Openers Ajinkya Rahane (76 not out) and Shane Watson (73), also the team captain, scored brilliant fifties to take their team home.
Rajasthan continue to top the IPL table, while Chennai – who lost their first match of the season – are second.
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