MI v RCB talking points: Krunal's timely double and Pollard's final assault

NEW DELHI: A look at the key passages of play from Match 14 of the

IPL 2016

, in which Mumbai Indians crushed Royal Challengers Bangalore by six wickets. With two wins in five games, Mumbai jumped to fourth in the points table, while RCB found themselves at sixth after just one win in three games.

Kohli-De Villiers' solid stand

RCB started cautiously and managed just 15 runs off the first three overs. Surprise opener KL Rahul then shifted gear and smacked back-to-back sixes followed by a four off Mitchell McClenaghan, but he edged the next ball to Harbhajan Singh in the slip, giving the bowler his first breakthrough of the day. After Rahul's wicket in the fourth over, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers started scoring freely and took RCB to 49/1 at the end of Powerplay. The duo kept scoring boundaries regularly and put on another 40 runs in the next four overs to take their team to 89/1 at the half-way mark. But Krunal Pandya dismissed both batsmen in the next over. Kohli scored 33 off 30 balls, which included three fours, and missed the chance to equal the record of five consecutive fifties in T20s. De Villiers scored 29 off 21 balls, hitting a six and three fours, as the duo put on another solid 59-run stand for the RCB in 6.3 overs.

Krunal's double halts RCB charge

After RCB raced to 89/1 in ten overs riding on the Kohli-de Villiers stand, Krunal produced a brilliant 11th over to halt the RCB run charge. He took the prized scalps of RCB's dynamic duo in the over, conceding just four runs, which changed the direction of the game. RCB couldn't recover for a while and lost wickets in a heap as they nose-dived to 99/4 in 13.3 overs. Kohli was the first to go, caught by Southee at long-off, followed by De Villiers four balls later - stumped trying to charge the spinner as Krunal finished with impressive figures of 2 for 27 in four overs. Between over 10 and 15, RCB lost three wickets for 23 runs which proved expensive in the end.

Head, Sarfaraz take RCB to 170

After cruising to 89/1, RCB stuttered to 112/4 in 15 overs and looked only good for 140 or so. But two youngsters - Travis Head and Sarfaraz Khan, had different plans. Their late assault helped RCB take control in the final five overs. The duo smashed two sixes and two fours each during the period and finished the RCB innings on a high. They took the total to 170/7 in the end, before both perished in the final over bowled by Jasprit Bumrah, the most successful of Mumbai bowlers with three for 31. Head was run-out in the first ball after scoring 37 off 24 balls and Sarfaraz was caught by Krunal three balls later for 28 off 18. Their stand read 63 runs for the fifth wicket which played a major role in RCB scoring 71 runs in the final 6.3 overs.

Rohit-Rayudu set the base

Chasing a 171-run target, MI lost Pathiv Patel early in the second over to Kane Richardson's first ball of the season. Rohit Sharma and Ambati Rayudu then stabilised the chase as they took MI to 51/1 at the end of Powerplay. They added another 30, which included two consecutive fours from Rayudu off Harshal Patel, in the next four overs to steadily take their team to 81/1 in ten overs. But two balls later, Iqbal Abdulla gave RCB a crucial breakthrough dismissing Rayudu for 31, scored off 23 balls with five fours. However, by then the pair had added 76 runs and set a solid base for MI to make the final assault. After reaching his fifty off 38 balls, Rohit also departed for 62 in 44 balls, hitting three sixes and four boundaries.

Mumbai canter home with Buttler and Pollard's late surge

When Rohit became Abdulla's second victim, MI were 109/3 after 13 overs – still needing 62 more off 42 balls. Then Kieron Pollard joined Jos Buttler and after seeing off one over watchfully, started the assault in the 15th, bowled by Shane Watson, hitting three boundaries. Buttler then smacked consecutive sixes off Abdulla in the next over before becoming the bowler's third victim. Buttler's 14-ball 28 cameo comprised two maximums and two fours.

With 28 still needed from in the final four overs, Pollard smashed back-to-back sixes off Richardson in the 17th to reduce the target to just 14 off 18 balls. But the big West Indian batsman looked in a hurry; hence he hit a six and two fours off Watson's final over to finish the chase with six wickets and two overs to spare. Pollard remained unbeaten on 40 off 19 balls, smashing three sixes and four boundaries.