Miller and Malik shine for Gujarat and Hyderabad in IPL

PUNE, India (AP) — David Miller bludgeoned an unbeaten 94 runs off 51 balls and Gujarat Titans took the outright lead of the Indian Premier League with a three-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings on Sunday with one ball remaining.

At Mumbai, fast bowler Umran Malik grabbed three wickets in the last over without conceding any runs as Sunrisers Hyderabad went on to beat Punjab Kings by seven wickets.

Gujarat has 10 points from six games, two points more than Lucknow Super Giants, Royal Challengers Bangalore and Hyderabad.

Stand-in captain Rashid Khan also played a vital cameo of 40 off 21 balls as Gujarat registered its fifth win in the tournament by reaching 170-7 in 19.5 overs in reply to Chennai's 169-5.

It was Chennai’s fifth loss in the tournament out of five games.

Needing 48 off the last three overs, Rashid smacked Chris Jordan (0-58) for three sixes and a four through his powerful wristwork as the Englishman conceded 25 off the 18th over.

Dwayne Bravo gave away 10 runs off the penultimate over and got the wickets of Rashid and Alzarri Joseph off his last two balls to finish with 3-23. But Miller stayed calm and took Gujarat home with a six off Jordan’s first ball of the final over and also a boundary at square leg.

Hardik Pandya was ruled out of the game due to groin strain and Gujarat was reduced to 16-3 as Shubman Gill went for a golden duck. Miller and Rashid turned the game on its head through some clean hitting with Miller smashing eight fours and six sixes in his superb match-winning knock.

Ruturaj Gaikwad, last year’s top-scorer in the IPL, finally returned to form after struggling in previous games and hit 73 off 48 for Chennai, which was asked to bat first.

Ambati Rayudu made 46 and captain Ravindra Jadeja (22 not out) lifted the score with two sixes in the last over.

MARVELOUS MALIK

In the first match at Mumbai, Malik, whose deliveries reached 152 kph (94 mph) during his four-over spell, finished with 4-28 as Punjab was dismissed for 151 in 20 overs after Hyderabad skipper Kane Williamson won the toss and elected to field.

Hyderabad lost Williamson cheaply in the fourth over, but its middle-order batted solidly to finish on 152-3 in 18.5 overs for its fourth successive successful chase in the tournament.

Aiden Markram made 41 not out off 27 balls and Nicholas Pooran scored a sedate 35 not out in an unbroken fourth-wicket stand of 75 runs for Hyderabad and handed Punjab its third loss from six games.

Leg-spinner Rahul Chahar bowled well in the middle overs for his 2-28 and had both Rahul Tripathi (34) and Abhishek Sharma (31) caught in the deep. But Pooran and Markram held firm against Kagiso Rabada in the death overs to see their team through without drama.

Earlier, Punjab’s top-order stuttered in the first half of its innings with Dhawan (8) top-edging Bhuvneshwar Kumar to mid-on in the third over.

Jonny Bairstow (12) was trapped leg before wicket by left-arm spinner Jagadeesha Suchith and Malik made it 61-4 with a return catch of Jitesh Sharma (11), who miscued a pull shot against pace.

Liam Livingstone (60 off 33) and Shahrukh Khan (26) revived the innings with a 71-run stand but Hyderabad made a grand comeback through Malik.

Livingstone hit five fours and four sixes. After he was caught well by a tumbling Williamson in the penultimate over, Malik ran through the tail in a superb last over.

Malik had Odean Smith caught off his own bowling with another brilliant short-pitched delivery off his second ball before hitting the stumps of Rahul Chahar and Vaibhav Arora off the fourth and fifth deliveries of the final over.

Punjab, which started the over at 151-6, couldn’t add a run as No. 11 batter Arshdeep Singh was run out on the final delivery.

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