IPL: MI's Madhwal 'engineers' LSG elimination

Little known Uttarakhand engineer Akash Madhwal bowled a dream spell as his five-wicket haul took five-time champions Mumbai Indians one step closer to summit clash after thrashing Lucknow Super Giants by 81 runs in IPL Eliminator, in Mumbai on Wednesday. Mumbai Indians scored 182 for 8 in 20 overs and it seemed 15 short given explosive batting firepower of Lucknow but Madhwal's incredible figures of 3.3-0-5-5 and some terrific ground fielding led by skipper Rohit Sharma saw Gautam Gambhir mentored side crumble for a paltry 101 in 16.3 overs.Mumbai Indians mounted a solid comeback after Naveen-ul-Haq's four-wicket haul to reach 182/8 in 20 overs. Cameron Green scored 41 and Suryakumar Yadav slammed 33 but Naveen's crucial wickets kept MI in check. However, Nehal Wadhera came up with a 12-ball 23 to end it well for the Rohit Sharma-led side.

Chasing 183 for a place in Qualifier 2, the final nail in Lucknow’s coffin came in the 12th over when Marcus Stoinis was dismissed on 40. Reduced to 89/6, there was no way back. Mumbai Indians pacer Akash Madhwal, a 29-year-old from Roorkee in Uttarakhand playing in his first season and only his seventh game, was the star of the show, claiming figures of 5/5 in 3.3 oversThere were three run-outs in what turned out to be a forgettable evening for the Sanjiv Goenka owned franchise