Kochi stifle Kolkata in hard-fought win

Kochi Tuskers Kerala won a battle of attrition against Kolkata Knight Riders on a slow Eden Gardens pitch to move to the third position in the points table. The wicket did not play as low as it did in Kolkata's win against Rajasthan Royals, but it was just as slow, making it difficult for batsmen, and a delight for the spinners.

After Yusuf Pathan and Shakib Al Hasan had taken six wickets for 48 runs between them to restrict Kochi to 132, Kolkata's powerful batting line-up would have fancied the modest chase. But Kochi's own army of spinners - Muttiah Muralitharan, Ramesh Powar and Ravindra Jadeja - stifled the runs though they did not get as many wickets, and ensured the pressure got to the Kolkata batsmen, who fell six runs short.

As it transpired, the performance against the new-ball bowlers was the difference between the two sides. Kolkata's seamers conceded 26 for 0 in their first three overs, while Kochi's fast bowlers dismissed Jacques Kallis and Gautam Gambhir, while conceding only 20 runs in their first four overs. Kallis fell to the hook for the second time running, swinging Vinay Kumar straight to deep square leg. Gambhir played inside the line of a full delivery from RP Singh that straightened and uprooted middle stump as Kolkata began to stutter.

In the next over, Manvinder Bisla drove outside the line of a Jadeja delivery to lose his off stump. Manoj Tiwary and Eoin Morgan tried to work the ball around but the spinners were getting turn, and their different styles posed problems. Muralitharan, back after being left out for the previous two games, varied his flight and angle brilliantly, Jadeja fired the ball in, and Powar stuck to flight as he always does.

The mounting asking-rate led to Morgan charging out of his crease in the 13th over for a non-existent single, and Jayawardene threw down the middle stump with a direct hit. Tiwary took on RP Singh in the next over with consecutive boundaries, but Shakib missed a low full toss off the last ball to be bowled.

Kochi Tuskers Kerala 132 for 7 (Jadeja 29, Yusuf 3-20, Shakib 3-28) beat 

Kolkata Knight Riders 126 for 9 (M Tiwary 46, RP Singh 2-25, Jadeja 2-25) by six runs

Kochi silence Mumbai's roar

Kochi Tuskers Kerala 184 for 2 (McCullum 81, Jayawardene 56) beat 
Mumbai Indians 182 for 2 (Tendulkar 100*, Rayudu 53) by eight wickets

Two weeks ago, the crowd at the Wankhede was delirious though a fervently anticipated Sachin Tendulkar century didn't materialize. On Friday, the same crowd went home dejected despite Tendulkar crafting his first Twenty20 century, as Kochi Tuskers Kerala busted their party with one of the most memorable chases in IPL history.

Two of the world's finest Twenty20 batsmen, Brendon McCullum and Mahela Jayawardene, constructed chalk-and-cheese half-centuries to power Kochi's pursuit of 183. Both perished to Lasith Malinga's deadly deliveries but Kochi, who had stumbled in the final stretch of their first two games, didn't slip up this time as Ravindra Jadeja and Brad Hodge muscled boundaries to finish the game with an over to spare.

Tendulkar's effort checked off another item on his ever-shrinking to-do list, and Mumbai ran up a tall total without needing contributions from Rohit Sharma, Andrew Symonds and Kieron Pollard. It was then assumed that the bowlers would make the rest of the game a formality, but McCullum firmly put that assumption to rest by muscling three boundaries between mid-off and cover in Malinga's second over. The next big jump came in the sixth over from Pollard as McCullum swatted a four past midwicket and Jayawardene eased boundaries behind square on either side of the wicket.

The Mumbai fielding made things worse for the home team. Rohit Sharma dropped McCullum at first slip off the first ball, and Jayawardene was given a life by Ali Murtuza at backward point.

McCullum kept skating out of the crease and lashing the ball through the off side right through his innings, while Jayawardene was content shuffling across and using the bowler's pace, rarely powering the ball. The difference between the two batsmen's innings was highlighted in the ninth over as McCullum smashed the first ball over long-off, and Jayawardene reverse-paddled the fifth ball off the back of the bat for four.

With dew making it difficult for the bowlers to grip the ball, both batsmen kept picking off the boundaries. Kochi were in command by the 14th over as they moved to 128 for 0 when Jayawardene deftly poked a Malinga delivery past the keeper towards a delighted Kochi dug-out. Next ball, Malinga removed Jayawardene with a yorker which prompted a surprise promotion for Jadeja. McCullum, though, kept Kochi on top with a couple of scythed boundaries in the 17th over that worsened Pollard's evening.

With 27 needed off three overs, and nine wickets in hand, Mumbai gambled by bringing on Malinga for his final over. He delivered by bowling McCullum first ball, but Hodge eased Kochi's anxieties with two walloped boundaries off the rest of the over. Jadeja, who has received plenty of criticism over the past two years, then justified his promotion with a couple of swiped sixes off Murtaza Ali to finish off Mumbai with an over to go.

It was the Kochi's franchise first IPL win and Mumbai's first defeat of the season, a result few predicted after Tendulkar had combined power and placement to reach a memorable century. It, however, came after a nervy start: Tendulkar was nearly run out on 0, umpire Paul Reiffel turned down two lbw appeals from Vinay Kumar which should have been given. There was also a close call for caught behind, and an outside edge off Thisara Perera that just beat the keeper.

Mumbai made relatively sedate progress, reaching 57 in eight overs before losing Davy Jacobs. The in-form Ambati Rayudu immediately took charge, blasting two sixes off Raiphi Gomez. A series of powerfully hit straight boundaries took him to 44, when the partnership had realised 64.

The final five overs turned into a Tendulkar show as he plundered 45 runs. Tendulkar showed how he could finesse the ball or force it depending on his mood: in the 16th over, a short ball on legstump was helped over fine leg for six, and a length ball outside off was pummelled over long-on for six more as 20 came off the over. A helicopter shot for four and a slugged six over midwicket took him to 90 after 19 overs.

Tendulkar proceeded to paddle a four past short fine leg, and bludgeon another past long-on before reaching his ton with a push to cover off the final delivery of the innings. The decibel levels shot up in the stands, but it was a muted celebration from Tendulkar himself on reaching the milestone.

Neither he nor the crowd were celebrating at the end of the game. One of the bigger worries for a formidable Mumbai unit was how dependent their attack was on Malinga's form, something they will have to address after losing despite a solid batting effort.

Gritty Mishra seals 2nd win for Pune

Navi Mumbai: After restricting the opposition for 148, Pune Warriors India had some anxious moment before overcoming Kochi Tuskers Kerala by four wickets in their Indian Premier League Twenty20 match.

Pune's top-order failed to back their bowlers but the unbeaten Mohnish Mishra (37) tore into Muttiah Muralitharan's 19th over - hitting two six and a four to guide his team home with seven balls remaining. The young batsman from Bhopal was thrilled at taking the experienced spinner apart, and celebrated the second six by punching the air.

Tuskers would have reasons to be pleased with their performance. Their disciplined bowlers did not allow Pune batsmen to have an easy chase. Pune kept losing wickets but Tuskers turned out to be about 20 runs short.

Kochi dismissed Graeme Smith, Mithun Manhas and Yuvraj Singh in quick succession, causing some tension in the Pune camp. But Robin Uthappa biffed two sixes and three fours in a 13-ball 31 to take Pune closer. The rollercoaster ride continued when Muralitharan got rid of Uthappa, bowled trying to repeat a reverse-sweep.

The home team lost hard-hitting opener Jesse Ryder for 17 runs when the left-hander smacked one straight back to Vinay Kumar, who showed amazing reflexes to take a catch off his own bowling. Smith batted with a runner (Alfonso Thomas) after a tumble with Rahul Sharma earlier in the day, and never looked confident during his brief stay for 24 runs.

Earlier, Ravindra Jadeja (47) and Brad Hodge (39) helped Kochi Tuskers overcome a mid-innings wobble as they made 148-8. Kochi were struggling at 24-4 after some tight bowling and fielding by Pune, but Jadeja and Hodge played responsibly to drag their team to a challenging total.

They put on 88 runs for the fifth wicket to pull Kochi out of early trouble. Between them, the duo belted five fours and five sixes before a brilliant catch by Murali Kartik in the deep cut short Hodge's stay in the middle. Jadeja soon followed going for a slog against Ryder.

Yuvraj Singh, warming into his captaincy, shrewdly rotated his bowlers yielding dividends. Wayne Parnell took 3-35 while six other bowlers were used by Pune.

Pacemen Parnell struck twice in the third over removing VVS Laxman and Mahela Jayawardena to reduce Kochi to 13-3 in the third over. Openers Brendon McCullum and Laxman, who put on 80 runs for the first wicket against Bangalore in their opening match, both scored ducks.

Raiphi Gomez, whose 20-run over in the game with Bangalore had cost Kochi the match, redeemed himself today with a quick 26 to finish the innings.

ABD powers RCB to thumping win

Royal Challengers Bangalore 162 for 4 (de Villiers 54, Tiwary 26) beat Kochi Tuskers Kerala 161 for 5 (McCullum 45, Laxman 36) by five wickets 

The first came in the ninth over in which Sreesanth leaked 15 runs as Bangalore moved to 80 for 2. It was a full delivery, off a free hit, and de Villiers went down on a bent knee to paddle-scoop it for a stunning six over fine-leg. The next blitz from him came after spinners Muttiah Muralitharan and Ravindra Jadeja choked up the run flow in the next few overs. With 33 runs required from the last three overs, de Villiers imposed himself against Raiphi Gomez, who was asked to bowl his first over in that pressure situation. The second delivery was smashed over midwicket, the fifth disappeared over long-off and the final delivery was bulldozed over long-on. Game over.

It wouldn't have been an easy decision for Mahela Jayawardene, Kochi's captain, to turn to Gomez but RP Singh's poor effort in the 15th over must have forced his hand. With 59 runs needed from the last six overs, RP Singh bowled a poor over. The first delivery was outside leg stump and Saurabh Tiwary shoved it to the fine-leg boundary. The second was a wide, the third was spanked to the straight boundary, and he kept bowling length and went for 15 runs.

Bangalore played the waiting game well; they saw out Muralitharan and treated Jadeja with some caution as they knew the seamers could be taken for plenty. It was the same resolve that saw them come back in the game with the ball and restrict Kochi to 161 after Brendon McCullum and VVS Laxman had added 80 runs in the first nine overs.

McCullum and Laxman are as different as a Bollywood masala flick and art-house cinema, but they combined superbly to lay a good platform. McCullum was the McCullum the world knows: aggressive, adrenaline-pumping and audacious as ever. He sashayed down the track in the first over to slap a Zaheer Khan delivery over extra cover, but really exploded in the second over against Dirk Nannes. A blasted off drive was followed with a slashed boundary but it was a thunderous pull over the midwicket boundary that really tested the lung power of the home crowd.

Laxman has been itching for the IPL to start to prove his worth in the shortest format of the game. There were a few lovely hits: a late cut for four against Tillakaratne Dilshan, lofted on drives on a bent knee and a couple of flicks, but it was a flat-batted thumping six over long-on that really declared his ambition to do well in this tournament. It was a short-of-length delivery from Abhimanyu Mithun, who must have been really shocked to see Laxman back away and flat-bat it over the boundary.

However, slowly, and surely, Bangalore began to claw their way back. In the final delivery of the ninth over, Laxman slog-swept Dilshan straight to deep midwicket, and in the 12th over, McCullum fell, top-edging a paddle scoop off Virat Kohli. Suddenly, the slow bowlers began to apply the squeeze. The legspinner Asad Pathan combined well with Kohli to keep Brad Hodge and Mahela Jayawardene in check. Jayawardene tried to break free against Daniel Vettori but was stumped in the 15th over, and Brad Hodge was yorked by Zaheer Khan in the 18th over.

It was left to Jadeja, who showed maturity in his shot selection, preferring the straight hits down the ground instead of across-the-line heaves, to push the score along. He did his bit with the ball too but it didn't prove enough.