New Zealand quick Trent Boult returned figures of 2-28 as he overcame hot UAE weather to help holders Mumbai Indians reach top of the Indian Premier League table on Sunday.
Boult, a left-arm paceman, led a disciplined bowling attack with Australia’s James Pattinson, who also took two wickets, as Mumbai outplayed Sunrisers Hyderabad by 34 runs in the afternoon match of the Twenty20 tournament.
South Africa’s Quinton de Kock hit form with his 39-ball 67 to guide Mumbai to 208 for five, a total the bowlers defended by restricting Hyderabad to 174-7 at the short-boundary Sharjah cricket ground.
“We had watched a bit of cricket played on this wicket. Small ground too. Good effort by the boys. We had something to bowl to,” Boult said after being named man of the match.
“I am known for swing and not for slower ones with the new ball, but you just use variations and angles.”
Boult got the key wickets of England batsman Jonny Bairstow for 25 and his national captain Kane Williamson, caught behind for three, to choke David Warner’s Hyderabad.
“I don’t actually get Kane out too much in the nets. So nice to do so, but more important to get the wicket,” he said.
“Very foreign conditions for me, very hot, but you have to be clear in your head. Execute what you want to do, and not worry about the ball travelling out of the park.”
Rohit Sharma-led Mumbai, who led the eight-team points table with three wins and two losses, have won record four titles in the IPL that is being played in the United Arab Emirates after being moved out of India due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The cash-rich tournament has been played behind closed doors across three UAE venues including Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
