Mumbai Indians’ win over Sunrisers Hyderabad has changed the equation of the playoffs in the IPL tournament. Mumbai’s win may have come as a shock to Hyderabad, but it has come as a relief to some teams.
The IPL season is now approaching its business end The top two teams Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals are in a comfortable position with 16 points each and are almost certain to make it to the final four. The real competition is for the third and fourth places which teams are working hard for. Like every season this time too the lower-ranked teams are spoiling the party for other teams. Mumbai’s win against SRH proved to be a dagger in the hearts of their opponents as it now jeopardizes their place in the Playoffs.
Surya magic helps MI to a win
Sunrisers Hyderabad scored 173 runs for the loss of eight wickets in 20 overs. Having lost their openers cheaply, MI looked in trouble, but Suryakumar Yadav saved the day for the five time champions. He scored an unbeaten 102 off 51 balls. During this period, Suryakumar formed a brilliant partnership with Tilak Verma. Mumbai scored 174 runs for the loss of three wickets in 17.2 overs and won the match by seven wickets.
With this win, the Mumbai team has moved up from the tenth position to the ninth position in the points table. Now Mumbai have eight points in their account. At the same time, the net run rate has been -0.212. Sunrisers Hyderabad remain at the fourth position with 12 points from 11 matches with 6 wins and 5 losses. Although the Hyderabad team is in the top four, the loss against Mumbai has pushed them to the back foot. Hyderabad now needs to win two out of three matches in any case. Their net run rate is -0.065, which is a matter of concern for them. Chennai Super Kings, who are third with 12 points after 11 matches, have a net run rate of +0.700, which gives them a little bit of breathing space.
Expect a Dogfight for the third and fourth places
The competition for third and fourth place is mainly between Hyderabad, Lucknow and CSK. These three teams have played 11 matches so far and all three have 12 points each. CSK has a better net run rate compared to Hyderabad and Lucknow. All three teams need a win to stay in the playoff race.
KKR have three matches to play, while Rajasthan have four matches left. If these two teams win even one game, they will officially make it to the playoffs. Rajasthan and KKR’s net run rate is also better than other teams and it will not be easy for any team to reach their level unless these two teams suffer heavy defeats. The possibilities are not completely over for sixth-ranked Delhi either. Delhi are sixth with 10 points after 11 matches with five wins and will need to win all the matches if they want to progress in the race.
Just winning all the matches will not be everything for Delhi to stay in the playoff race. Delhi will have to hope for other teams to lose their remaining games. As things stand, Delhi’s path to the playoffs does not look easy and its chances of advancing are less than 15 percent.
