Mumbai gained a tight victory after a remarkable rearguard effort that had them chasing 280 in the fourth innings for a three-wicket victory over Madhya Pradesh (MP) in Indore. After conceding a first-innings lead of 39, they bowled their opponents out for 201 by the end of the second day. An attacking half-century from opener Jay Bista laid the foundation for a successful chase, but wickets in the middle had them stuttering. Reduced to 215 for 7 at one stage, largely owing to the exploits of off-spinner Jalaj Saxena, Mumbai were shepherded towards victory by a responsible partnership between Iqbal Abdullah and Shardul Thakur. This was Mumbai’s highest successful chase away from home.
Mumbai began poorly, with the wicket of opener Akhil Herwadkar in the second over of the day. Bista combined with the in-form Shreyas Iyer, and later Suryakumar Yadav, to get his team to a reasonably comfortable 127 for 2, before Yadav was caught and bowled by Saxena. Wickets started arriving regularly thereafter, until a seventh-wicket resistance took shape to prevent defeat.
The result has Mumbai, who were already leading the points table, possessing 32 points from seven games. Gujarat, who have endured three play-less days in Tirunelveli against Tamil Nadu, are a distant second, with 22 points from six games.
Scores:
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