Mumbai hunt down 295 to lead Group B table

Mumbai's collective batting might, driven mainly by the consistency of Shreyas Iyer (91 off 112 balls) and Akhil Herwadkar (75 off 111), earned the team six points against Railways, whose enterprising declaration did not translate to success, at the Wankhede Stadium.

Set 295 in 70 overs after Railways declared on 408 for 4, Mumbai achieved the target with six overs to spare on a surface that held no threat for the batsmen despite the turn on offer. Iyer and Herwadkar produced their second fifty-plus scores of the match enroute a 143-run partnership in 183 balls, to provide the critical thrust to the chase.

Captain Aditya Tare's return to form, with an unbeaten 71 off 82 balls, was opportune as well. He and Siddhesh Lad ensured the hosts lapped the final stretch with ease, after Railways had struck three quick blows to remove Herwadkar, Iyer and Suryakumar Yadav in quick succession. By handing Railways their sixth defeat of the season, Mumbai are now on top of Group B with 26 points, and Railways at the bottom.

The final day saw the game hurtle along at a tempo barely seen over the last three days - the run rate was consistently above four an over. Both teams had a hand in the exhibition of intent; first, Railways set the game up for a result before Mumbai accepted the challenge of a tight chase.

Railways reeled off 123 runs in the 18 overs they faced in the morning, with overnight batsmen Saurabh Wakaskar and V Cheluvaraj cutting loose. Their 253-run alliance came to an end when Wakaskar was removed by left-arm spinner Vishal Dabholkar for 185, his highest score. But, Cheluvaraj carried on, and proceeded to complete his maiden century in first-class cricket. Railways' innings received further acceleration when Vivek Singh helped himself to 26 off 15 balls before his dismissal called for the declaration.

Mumbai's response was to channel their collective energies towards hunting the target down. Iyer's match-up with legspinner Karn Sharma, for instance, was reflective of their attack-first mentality. Bowling for the major part from round the stumps, with five men patrolling the boundaries, Karn pitched the ball on the rough outside leg, inviting Iyer to drive against the spin. Iyer was game for it, and on occasions, cleverly chipped the ball with enough power for it to cross the infield and yet not find the fielder's hands. On a couple of occasions, he lofted the ball into the stands.

With Herwadkar running well between the wickets as well, Iyer had little trouble in keeping the scoring rate steady despite boundaries not being available easily: he, in fact, scored only five fours and two sixes. Herwadkar, on the other hand, was surgical in the manner he played the ball late, optimally using the dimensions of the crease to either cut or pull. He has now made fifty-plus scores, including a hundred in the first innings of this match, in each of his last five innings.

The only time Railways found themselves in the game was when debutant left-arm spinner Sagar Mishra dismissed Herwadkar and Suryakumar in successive overs, but they undid those breakthroughs with sloppy catching: both Herwadkar (on 54) and Lad (on 19) were reprieved at crucial junctures. While their decision to risk one point in the quest for a win was positive and prudent, the drops hurt any realistic chance they had.