Pune beats Kochi, Punjab downs Chennai

Kochi Tuskers Kerala's Ravindra Jadeja bats during an IPL cricket match against Pune Warriors in Mumbai.—AP Dawn.com

MOHALI: South Africa quick Wayne Parnell’s three wickets led Pune Warriors to victory in the Indian Premier League, and Paul Valthaty smashed 120 not out off 63 balls Wednesday as Punjab beat defending champion Chennai Super Kings.

Parnell claimed 3-35 and teammate Mohnish Mishra slammed an unbeaten 37 in Mumbai as Pune won by four wickets after scoring 151-6 in 18.5 overs having restricted Kochi Tuskers to 148-8.

Earlier in Mohali, Valthaty upstaged several Indian internationals in helping Punjab score 193-4 in 19.1 overs in reply to Chennai’s 188-4 for a six-wicket victory.

It was the second win for the Yuvraj Singh-led Pune while Mahela Jayawardene’s Kochi fell to its second consecutive loss.

Pune survived some tough moments in its chase before Mishra smashed two fours and two sixes off 21 balls to settle the issue between the two new franchises. Robin Uthappa had earlier made a brisk 13-ball 31.

”I thought both of them (Uthappa and Mishra) batted well,” Yuvraj said after the match. ”Mishra always says he wants to open the innings while I think he is best at number six, and that is where he is going to keep batting.”

Earlier, Kochi made a splendid recovery to reach 148-8 after being 24-4 at one stage.

Left-armer Parnell bagged three for five in his first two overs, which included the scalps of VVS Laxman and Jayawardene.

But left-hander Ravindra Jadeja (47) and Australian batsman Brad Hodge (39) helped Kochi post a competitive total.

In the first match of the day, Valthaty was a surprise hero. The 27-year-old Valthaty, who has never played first-class cricket, smashed two sixes and 19 fours in the first win for the Adam Gilchrist-led Punjab.

Chennai suffered its first loss in two matches despite registering the highest score of the tournament.

Valthaty, promoted as opener, propelled the score with lusty hitting early on and reached 30 off 17 deliveries, taking his team to 50 off just 5.1 overs.

He continued in the same vein and his domination can be gauged from the fact that the next highest scorer for his team was Dinesh Karthik with 21 not out.

Valthaty recorded the first century of this IPL, overshadowing some superb performances including that of World Cup-winning captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Dhoni struck a quickfire 43 off only 20 deliveries after solid efforts from opener Murali Vijay (74 off 43 balls) and dependable middle-order batsman Subramaniam Badrinath (66 not out off 56).

On Thursday, Royal Challengers Bangalore will host Deccan Chargers.

Scores:
Kings XI Punjab 193-4 in 19.1 overs (Paul Valthaty 120 not out), def. Chennai Super Kings 188-4 in 20 overs (Murali Vijay 74, Subramaniam Badrinath 66 not out, Mahendra Singh Dhoni 43; Praveen Kumar 2-37).

Pune Warriors 151-6 in 18.5 overs (Mohnish Mishra 37 not out, Robin Uthappa 31, Brad Hodge 2-14), def. Kochi Tuskers 148-8 in 20 overs (Ravindra Jadeja 47, Brad Hodge 39, Wayne Parnell 3-35).