'Unbelievable' Suryakumar hits ton as Mumbai dent Hyderabad's play-off push
Cricket
Suryakumar hit the winning six, which also raised his second IPL ton in 51 balls
Mumbai (AFP) – Suryakumar Yadav hit an unbeaten 102 to lead Mumbai Indians to a crushing seven-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad on Monday as teams jostle for a play-off berth in the IPL.
Chasing 174 for victory, Mumbai slipped to 31-3 before Suryakumar put on an unbeaten stand of 143 with Tilak Varma to achieve the target with 16 balls to spare at their home Wankhede Stadium.
Suryakumar hit the winning six, which also raised his second IPL ton in 51 balls and comes as a welcome sign for India ahead of the T20 World Cup in June in the West Indies and the United States.
"SKY was unbelievable," skipper Hardik Pandya said of his player of the match. "More than him getting runs, him putting so much pressure on bowlers that even other batters get loose balls. He breaks you. Lucky to have him in my team."
However the win for five-time winners Mumbai, placed ninth in the 10-team table, could be late in a tournament fast moving towards its business end. Hyderabad, led by Pat Cummins, stay fourth in the table but their fifth loss and a big one could hurt their play-off chances.
Hyderabad need to win two of their remaining three matches to make the play-offs as they remain locked at 12 points with third-placed Chennai Super Kings and Lucknow Super Giants at fifth. The top four teams will make the play-offs with the final on May 26 in Chennai.
Hyderabad, who have posted record IPL totals of 277 and 287 this season, next host Lucknow and Cummins said, "We like playing at home, done well there so far. Looking forward to what's ahead of us. Hopefully a few more fireworks."
Former champions Hyderabad posted 173-8 courtesy of Travis Head's 48 and an unbeaten 17-ball 35 by lower-order batter Cummins after being invited to bat first.
The left-handed Head gave the team a brisk start with his 30-ball knock before his departure in the 11th over and Hyderabad lost their way with regular wickets.
Pandya and spinner Piyush Chawla took three wickets each to rattle the opposition middle and lower-order as Hyderabad slipped to 136-8 in 17 overs.
But number nine Cummins had other ideas as the Australian Test and ODI captain hit back in the final three overs and put on an unbeaten stand of 37 off 19 balls with Sanvir Singh.
The batting effort inspired the team and fast bowlers came roaring to reduce Mumbai to 31-3 including the key wicket of Rohit Sharma, out caught behind for four off Cummins.
Suryakumar soon took charge with his attacking batting as he raised his 50 in 30 balls and hammered the opposition bowling with 12 fours and six sixes. The left-handed Varma made 37 and enjoyed Suryakumar's blitz from the other end.
