Mumbai Indians clinched the last remaining spot in the IPL 2025 playoffs after completing a resounding 59-run victory over Delhi Capitals at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday, thus eliminating their beleaguered opponents from the competition.
Both teams needed to win this match to stay in contention for the playoffs, but DC never turned up – they were without skipper Axar Patel – and ended up being bowled out for 121 in pursuit of a target of 181. Thus, DC became the first team in IPL history to fail to qualify for the playoffs after winning their first four matches.
With this win, the five-time IPL champions MI have got themselves to fourth place on the leaderboard with 16 points, and there is a serious possibility that they could finish inside the top two.
Having been put into bat, MI slipped to 58/3 inside seven overs. The pitch was a bit two-paced and DC’s spinners found some grip, which meant that Tilak Varma and Surkakumar Yadav were forced to nudge the ball around. Boundaries were hard to come by, and the pair needed 47 deliveries to raise the 50-run partnership.
Tilak was out to Mukesh Kumar for a run-a-ball 27, after which MI captain Hardik Pandya fell cheaply, and at 123/5 midway through the 17th over matters did not look too promising for the home team. But spurred by a clinical cameo of 24 not out off eight balls from Naman Dhir, and a brilliant finish from Suryakumar, MI scored 47 runs off the last 12 deliveries of the innings to get to 180. Suryakumar ended on 73* off 43 balls, an effort that later fetched him the Player-of-the-Match award.
Delhi’s chase never got going. Deepak Chahar took out Faf du Plessis early and Trent Boult nipped out KL Rahul cheaply, and once these two were dismissed hopes started to fade fast. No big stands were forged as Jasprit Bumrah and Mitchell Santner combined to utterly confound DC’s batting with surgical precision.
For years deemed surplus to Chennai Super Kings’ requirements, Santner came into his own for MI with a masterful four-over spell that netted him 3/11. Bumrah was at his best too, claiming 3/12 from 3.2 overs.
