Mumbai demolish Royals

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It may have been a dead rubber, but Mumbai certainly didn't let their game slip as they raced to a 10-wicket win over the Rajasthan Royals.

It may have been a dead rubber, but Mumbai certainly didn't let their game slip as they raced to a 10-wicket win over the Rajasthan Royals.

Having won the toss and decided to bat first, the Royals were hampered by the loss of early wickets as Dhawal Kulkarni removed Rahul Dravid and
Ajinkya Rahane cheaply.

A partnership of 53 between Shane Watson and Stuart Binny got the hosts back on track before the later was run out for 30 after Kieron Pollard showed some good soccer skills off his own bowling.

Watson (45) followed soon after but with Owais Shah and Ashok Menaria both making handy contributions of 28 and 21 respectively, the Royals had a total of 162 that while not massive was at least something to defend.

Ultimately, it proved not nearly enough, as poor fielding and brutal batting saw the Indians surge to victory.

Dwayne Smith (87 not out) and Sachin Tendulkar (58 not out) were the men who did the damage, smashing the Royals attack to all ends as they reached their total with 12 balls to spare.

Smith in particular was harsh on the hosts, hitting 10 fours and three sixes in an innings well deserving of the Man of the Match award that was later handed to him.

The duo's unbeaten partnership of 163 surpassed the previous best of 159 put on by Chennai's Michael Hussey and Murali Vijay last year.

While the result itself means little, the Indians will be pleased to enter the knockout phase of the tournament with good momentum.

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