Apr 16, Abu Dhabi: Kolkata beat Mumbai by 41 runs in the opener of IPL 2014.
A thumping win for Kolkata as they have decimated the defending champions Mumbai in this encounter. Chasing a stiff 164 to win on a sluggish pitch, the Mumbai innings never got momentum. Kolkata bowlers not only turned out economical but also took vital wickets at regular intervals. Morkel who with his pace and bounce tormented the batsmen while the mystery of Narine took center-stage as he bamboozled the batsmen getting key wickets when they mattered the most. Rohit and Rayudu put up a fight but in the end it was too much for them as they fell to the pressure. The likes of Pollard and Anderson were left with too much to do and ended up well short. This is only the 3rd time that Kolkata have beaten Mumbai in Championship history and is also their biggest win over Mumbai as well.
Brief score
Kolkata 163/5 in 20 overs, Kallis - 72, M Pandey - 64; Maling - 4/23
Mumbai 122/7 in 20 overs, Rayudu - 48; Narine - 4/20
Quotes
"Before the toss I had told that we have a brilliant bowling line up and hence the runs on the board will help us greatly. The plan was to make either me or Kallis bat till 15th over. We have someone like Morne Morkel who can get bounce anywhere and then Narine and Piyush. We have a well balanced attack." - Gautam Gambhir
"It was disappointing the way we played but it is a long tournament and we have to learn quick."- Rohit Sharma
Man of the Match - J Kallis (Kolkata)
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