(Cricinfo) Tournament heavyweights Delhi Daredevils yesterday crashed to a 98-run defeat against an inspired Mumbai Indians outfit that seemed determined to set the lopsided head-to-head record straight and, in the process, went to the top of the points table.
Quickfire sixties from Sachin Tendulkar and Saurabh Tiwary took Mumbai to an imposing 218 but a batting line-up capable of overhauling the biggest of targets was bowled out with more than three overs to spare.
Delhi were already handicapped by the loss of Gautam Gambhir to a hamstring pull early in the match so it was up to the middle order to anchor a big chase. But the loss of a steadying hand in Gambhir showed up as the likes of Virender Sehwag and Tillakaratne Dilshan performed well below expectations.
The backup for those heavyweights had little time in which to plot and execute a Yusuf Pathan-like counterattack.
Dilshan began the chase on an audacious note by slapping the first ball over mid-off for four.
It was an emphatic way to get off the mark after two consecutive ducks, and Delhi motored along at a rate marginally faster than Mumbai after three overs.
Mumbai had to dislodge at least one of the opening duo of Dilshan and Virender Sehwag, and the first breakthrough came through Lasith Malinga in the fourth over. After firing it in the blockhole to keep Dilshan under check, he bowled a slower ball and sent the off stump for a spin as the batsman swished at thin air.
The expectations on Sehwag only increased but he was the first victim of a double-strike by Dwayne Bravo in the seventh over. Trying to clear long-off, he made contact off the toe-edge of the bat straight down Ambati Rayudu’s throat.
Four balls later, AB de Villiers dragged one onto his stumps and the momentum had firmly swung in Mumbai’s favour.
A flurry of boundaries by Dinesh Karthik – three in a row – raised some hope, but he too joined the exodus, courtesy a brilliant stumping down the leg side by Aditya Tare. When Manhas perished in the 10th over, Delhi had lost half their side, and with Gambhir indisposed, the match had ceased to be a contest.
