DELHI, India, CMC – West Indies batsmen Lendl Simmons and Kieron Pollard both failed as Mumbai Indians’ nightmare start to the new Indian Premier League season continued with a 37-run defeat to Delhi Daredevils here yesterday.
Chasing 191 for victory at the Feroz Shah Kotla, Mumbai were restricted to 153 for nine off their 20 overs, to slump to their fifth loss in six outings and remain bottom of the IPL standings with two points.
Captain and stroke-maker Rohit Sharma and Ambati Rayudu both top scored with 30 while opener Parthiv Patel chipped in with 28 but Mumbai lost wickets at regular intervals to have their progress hampered.
Simmons scored 15 from 14 deliveries with three fours and added 35 for the first wicket with Patel, to give the visitors a smooth enough start to their run chase.
The Trinidadian mis-hit one in the fifth over, however, and was brilliantly caught by JP Duminy running back from mid-on off seamer Domnic Muthuswami.
Pollard entered the contest at 68 for three in the ninth over and looked to be settling in when he cleared the ropes at deep mid-wicket with South African leg-spinner Imran Tahir. He had made ten from eight deliveries when he sliced leg-spinner Amit Mishra to cover where Shahbaz Nadeem took the catch in the 11th over.
The innings lost its way thereafter as Tahir ripped through the middle and lower order with three for 22 from his four overs.
