Maxwell fireworks can't save Kings XI

The Match in a Tweet: Maxi's marauding 50 comes in vain as Mumbai ride on superb Patel-Rayudu stand to keep Kings in crisis.

The scorecard: Mumbai Indians 6-189 (Patel 81, Rayudu 65, M Sharma 3-38) beat Kings XI Punjab 7-164 (Maxwell 56, Bumrah 3-26) by 25 runs

The Aussie Pack: Shaun Marsh continued his good run with 45 off 34, inclusive of three fours and a six. He was outdone by Maxwell, who scored his first half-century of this IPL season with a fine 56 off 39. He hit five fours and a six, and in doing so put on 89 off 61 with Marsh, as Kings XI tried to chase a tall order of 190. Marsh fell to Tim Southee (2-28) in the 15th over, and despite 69 needed off 30, they were still in the hunt with Maxwell going great guns. He was dismissed off the first delivery of the 18th over, when he failed to pick a slower one from Jasprit Bumrah (3-26) and was bowled, turning the game for Mumbai Indians.

Mitchell Johnson finally returned to the Kings XI line-up after they had played around with their combination without success. Though the result didn’t change for the beleaguered Punjab side, he managed to take 1-43 in his four overs, and it could have been much better; the left-armer took the wicket of top-scorer Parthiv Patel with a no-ball, and had the same batsman dropped from his bowling. 

The Patel Effect: Punjab won the toss and decided to follow the chasing script of this season. It started as per plan for them, with Rohit Sharma caught behind for a two-ball duck. But Patel and Ambati Rayudu put on 137 off 85 to defy any hopes the hosts had of notching a second win in this tournament.

The left-handed opener scored 81 off 58, inclusive of 10 fours and two sixes. Rayudu, at the other end, made 65 off 37 with four fours and as many sixes. It was tough to say who was the more aggressive batsman, as both attacked at different intervals. The latter was tough on Axar Patel (1-41), taking the left-arm spinner for 29 off 12, while Patel earned his stripes against Johnson, smacking him for 28 off 16.

The Difference: Jos Buttler (24 off 13) got going towards the end of the Mumbai innings, and helped them steal 49 off the last five overs. But it was Parthiv who really fired Ricky Ponting's side to a strong total. His aggressive ploy against Mohit Sharma (3-38) and Pardeep Sahu (0-35) worked wonders, taking 36 off 17 against them in the middle overs. They were placed at 1-77 at the halfway stage, and took 63 off the next 30 deliveries, which propelled their score to 6-189.

In contrast, Kings XI enjoyed a better start, thanks to Murali Vijay (19 off 13), and Manan Vohra did enough to help the score along to 2-32 in the fifth over. And while the third-wicket partnership between Marsh and Maxwell ticked along at 8.75 per over, it wasn't enough in the face of such a tall order, and too much was left to do in the closing stages.

From there, Mumbai’s pace bowlers did the job for them, with Southee, Mitchell McClenaghan (2-32) and Bumrah sharing seven wickets between them, as Punjab fell short by 25.  

The Stat: It was Maxwell’s first IPL half-century since he scored 90 against Chennai Super Kings in 2014. It was also the first time Kings XI won the toss in six matches this season, though that was of little satisfaction; Mumbai’s victory was only the third time thus far that a team batting first went on to win this season.

The Wash-Up: Mumbai Indians are riding a sinusoidal curve at the moment, winning and losing alternately. This was their third win in seven matches, and moves them to fifth in the standings with six points. It has been a case of different players performing on different occasions for them, and the lack of a collective effort has hampered any chances of putting a consistent run thus far.

For Punjab, six matches have brought just the one win, and they continue to linger at the foot of the points table. They have now gone three matches without tasting victory, but the one positive will be Maxwell and Miller both getting runs. If their big guns start to fire, maybe they will start to hope again.

The Next Stop: Mumbai travel home next, and will take on the high-flying Kolkata Knight Riders on Thursday, in what will be a tough ask for the hosts. Kings XI meanwhile will travel to Rajkot and play the Gujarat Lions on Sunday afternoon.