NEW DELHI: Virender Sehwag completes well his 1st encounter against a Rajya Sabha nominee as Delhi Daredevils wallop Mumbai Indians by 37-runs at the on Friday night.
The win took Delhi, by far the form horse of the season, to the top of the table with 12 points from 8 fixtures, a place in the last four now appear well within the realm of possibility.
Sehwag had said before the match how it would be a novel occasion playing against a likely member of the upper house – Sachin Tendulkar - and once his 39-ball 73, and Kevin Pietersen’s mind-blowing 50 runs took Delhi to 207 batting 1st the moment was made all the more memorable, as Mumbai gave up the ghost 37 runs short of the target.
The visitors, however, got it all wrong right from the start. Harbhajan Singh win the toss and selected to field, only to find the decision backfire as Sehwag, Mahela Jayewardene (55) and Pietersen (50 not out, 26b) all flaming half-centuries to hit Mumbai where it hurt – the 208 target an impossible mountain whichever way one look at it.
And when Mumbai lost Tendulkar, Aiden snowstorm and Rohit Sharma within the 1st 4 overs of the chase – with just 19 on the board – the match was likely to finish only one way. Although Ambati Rayudu 62 and Dinesh Karthik -40strove to make a first of it ask proved too much in the end, and all Delhi’s bowlers had to do was put it in the fit and wait for the batsmen to hole out.
Earlier, Delhi looked no gift horses in the mouth as Harbhajan sent them in, and directly went hell for leather. The home side posted 50 in under 6overs, 100 in 8 overs and 150 in 15 overs, not once allowing the scoring rate to dip, as 1st Sehwag and Jayewardene, and later Pietersen struck the large blows against almost the total of Mumbai’s bowling attack. But really, the writing was on the wall when Sehwag and Jayawardene joint for 135 runs in just 13.1 overs for the opening wicket.
Dinesh Karthik missed a stumping of Sehwag, off Robin Peterson; when the batsman was on 40, and the slip cost Mumbai over 30 expensive runs as the Delhi skipper went on to steal the attack with disdain.
