Mumbai: Sunrisers Hyderabad experienced a stroke of good fortune, yet on a warm evening at Wankhede Stadium, it proved insufficient against the well-structured strategy devised by the Mumbai Indians.

In a contest featuring two underperforming teams, MI emerged victorious with a convincing four-wicket win on Thursday, despite losing a few wickets late in their pursuit of 163 runs.

SRH entered the match with a wealth of knowledge about their opponents, particularly expecting Ishan Kishan, with his extensive experience in MI colors, to excel. However, the pitch did not play to their advantage; it appeared to hold the ball during the first innings, diminishing SRH’s batting effectiveness.

Deepak Chahar had the potential to provide MI with an ideal start, even without the pitch's assistance, had it not been for some misfielding.

The pacer could have dismissed both Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head in the opening over. While SRH seemed to be riding a wave of luck, Bumrah was called into action in the fourth over, employing a mix of slower deliveries, bouncers, and yorkers.

Given Travi-shek’s reputation, MI’s leading pacer was immediately in death-over mode. The home side utilized two of Bumrah’s overs during the Powerplay. Although they could not break the partnership between the two left-handed batsmen, they managed to keep them subdued, with SRH at 47/0 after the first six overs.

MI batting coach Kieron Pollard informed the broadcasters that the slower-ball tactic was tailored specifically for Travi-shek, who he described as a ‘one-dimensional, hard-hands type of batsman.’ As the strategy began to yield results, MI started to employ it more frequently.

Hardik Pandya’s early overs were filled with excitement. He seemed to have injured his ankle early on but quickly recovered and promptly bowled a short delivery to Abhishek Sharma, resulting in a catch at deep point for 40 runs off 28 balls. The MI captain nearly dismissed Head as well, only to realize he had overstepped the crease.

After MI lost Karn Sharma due to a finger injury, Will Jacks was called upon to deliver his overs.

Jacks commenced with two economical overs of part-time off-spin, during which he deceived Kishan (2) with a well-placed delivery that was wide enough to lead to a stumping.

The English off-spinner also played a pivotal role in dismissing Head, who scored 28 off 29 balls, as the Australian misjudged the pitch of the ball and was caught at long-off. With impressive figures of 3 overs, 14 runs, and 2 wickets, Jacks effectively disrupted SRH’s aggressive batting strategy.

It wasn't until the 18th over that SRH managed to hit their first six. The MI bowlers executed their plans with great skill; for instance, Trent Boult employed yorkers in the 15th over, successfully slowing down the scoring rate.

Heinrich Klaasen eventually found his rhythm in the 18th over, scoring 21 runs off Deepak Chahar. Although Jasprit Bumrah delivered a tight 19th over, conceding only 21 runs, SRH's lower order managed to score 22 runs off Hardik in the final over.

In total, 43 runs were scored in those two overs, while the remaining 18 overs yielded only 119 runs, leaving SRH with a total of 162.

To secure victory, SRH needed early breakthroughs. However, it was unexpected that Pat Cummins refrained from using spin during the Powerplay, and the fast bowlers did not employ slower deliveries either.

Mohammed Shami was given the responsibility to seek swing, while Harshal Patel, known for his array of slower balls, was kept in reserve. Rohit Sharma had a mixed start, missing some deliveries but eventually scoring 26 runs off 16 balls, helping MI reach 55/1 after his dismissal.

When Harshal entered the attack, his slower ball successfully dismissed Ryan Rickelton (31), but by that time, the dew had started to impact the game.

Rahul Chahar was introduced as an Impact Sub, but Suryakumar Yadav did not allow him or Zeeshan Ansari to settle in. The two leg-spinners collectively conceded 40 runs in 4 overs. Hardik contributed crucial runs with 21 off 9 balls, while Tilak Varma (21*) guided the team to victory in 18.1 overs.

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