The China Mail - Fifth straight IPL loss for Punjab as Varma slams 75 for Mumbai

Bumrah stood in for the unavailable duo of Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav, as Varma starred again for Mumbai, lifting his side from 88-3 to 205-4, and crossing the finish line with a ball to spare.

Varma hit six sixes. He had Will Jacks (25 not out) for company at the end.

Earlier, Punjab recovered to 200-8 after a middle-order collapse precipitated by Shadul Thakur's 4-39.

Azmatullah Omarzai's 38 off 17 balls turned the game around for the Kings, but it did not suffice.

Fourth-placed Punjab, struggling to stay afloat in the top four, lost a fifth consecutive game, and must win both their remaining games to make the knockouts. Mumbai are ninth with four wins in 12 games.

Put into bat, Punjab made a quick getaway with its openers putting on 50 off 33 balls.

Prabhsimran Singh, who has been criticised on social media for being overweight, replied with four sixes and hit 50 off 29 balls. He added 57 off 35 balls with Cooper Connolly (21).

Thakur applied the brakes as he picked four wickets in three overs.

He had Prabhsimran Singh caught in the 12th over, and bowled skipper Shreyas Iyer two balls later.

Punjab did not score a run for six balls as Raj Bawa bowled Connolly. They lost six wickets for 33, crashing to 140-7.

Late carnage helped Punjab hit 63 runs in the final three overs and reach 200. Omarzai struck 19 runs off the 18th over, then Bartlett scored 22 and 12 off the final two – the duo hit four sixes between them.

Skipper Bumrah took no wickets and conceded 35 runs in his four overs

Mumbai started quickly as Ryan Rickelton hit 48 off 23 balls with four sixes. He put on 61 off 39 balls with Rohit Sharma (25).

Omarzai struck with the ball, dismissing both Rickelton and later Sherfane Rutherford for 20 after a stand of 61 with Varma.

Yuzvendra Chahal bowled a controlled first spell of wrist spin on a slowing Dharamsala wicket, before Varma broke free with 50 off 25 balls.

Varma and Jacks put on 56 off 20 balls to secure victory.

str/pb

F.Brown--ThChM