PUNE - Steven Smith's century went in vain as Gujarat Lions rode on a blazing opening stand between Dwayne Smith and Brendon McCullum to beat Rising Pune Supergiants by three wickets in a thrilling last ball finish in their Indian Premier League match here Friday.
Smith smashed 101 off just 54 deliveries as Pune posted a challenging 195 for 3 after being put into bat but the Lions capitalized on the 93-run opening stand between Dwayne Smith (63 off 37 balls) and McCullum (43 off 22 balls) to pull off a narrow win.
With the win Friday, the Lions consolidated their top spot at the league table as they have collected 12 points from seven matches. Rising Pune Supergiants remained sixth with four points from seven matches.
Brief scores: Rising Pune Supergiants 195 for 3 in 20 overs (Steve Smith 101, Ajinkya Rahane 53; Dwayne Bravo 1-40) lost to Gujarat Lions 196 for 7 in 20 overs (Dwayne Smith 63; Ashok Dinda 2-40, Thisera Perera 2-41).
Rohit, Pollard lift Mumbai
Mumbai Indians’ skipper Rohit Sharma (49-ball 68 not out) and Kieron Pollard (17-ball 51, 2x4s, 6x6s) provided the entertainment as the host chased down Kolkata Knight Riders’ 174-5 in just 18 overs with six wickets in hand Thursday.
Pollard ensured the Mumbai fans left on a high, hitting three sixes off Jaydev Unadkat to finish off the game in style.
Earlier, to avoid the dew factor at the Wankhede Stadium, MI skipper Rohit opted to field after winning the toss.
Brief scores: Mumbai Indians 178 for 4 (Rohit 68*, Pollard 51*; Narine 2-22) beat Kolkata Knight Riders 174 for 5 (Gambhir 59, Uthappa 36; Southee 2-38) by six wickets.
Du Plessis out with broken finger
South African batsman Faf du Plessis was Thursday ruled out of the IPL with a broken finger, raising concerns about his availability for the upcoming tour of the West Indies.
Du Plessis was the second-highest run-getter for his IPL side Rising Pune Supergiants before getting injured in his sixth game of the season Tuesday.
"And so my ipl tournament unfortunately comes to an end. Broken finger and out for 6 weeks. Thanks India and @RPSupergiants. It's been fun," the Proteas Twenty20 skipper wrote on his Twitter handle.
If Du Plessis takes six weeks to recover from his injury then he might miss the start of the West Indies tri-series starting June 3, which also involves Australia.
Incidentally it is Australian batsman Usman Khawaja who has been named as his replacement in the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led side.
Steyn replaces injured Malinga in CPL
South African fast bowler Dale Steyn was Friday named as a replacement for injured Sri Lankan seamer Lasith Malinga in the Jamaica Tallawahs team to play in the Caribbean Premier League.
Steyn will be making his debut in the six-franchise Twenty20 tournament which runs from June 30-Aug. 7.
Malinga has been ruled out with a knee injury sustained during the West Indies series back in November 2015. Despite featuring briefly in the Asia Cup, he has been unavailable since then and missed out on the World T20 and the ongoing Indian Premier League.
The CPL will this year also stage six matches in Florida as cricket makes another attempt to break the packed US sports market.
