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Cape Town: Sachin Tendulkar led from the front as Mumbai Indians launched their campaign in the second edition of the Indian Premier League with a stunning 19-run victory over last year's runners-up Chennai Super Kings on Saturday.
The Mumbai Indians first rattled up a competitive 165 for seven riding on Tendulkar's masterly unbeaten 59 and quick-fire 35 by Abhishek Nayar and then stopped Chennai Super Kings at 146 for seven in a tight game at the Newlands stadium.
Tendulkar played a pivotal role by anchoring the innings with a crafty unbeaten 59 but it was young Abhishek Nayar who provided the impetus late in the innings with a 14-ball 35 which took Mumbai to a decent total on what appeared to be a rather spongy track.
He declared man of the match for hist briant half century.
The experienced Sanath Jayasuriya was the other notable performer for Mumbai Indians with a 20-ball 26 while Shikar Dhawan chipped in with 22.
Where Chennai's pacers were tidy in restricting runs during the middle stages of Mumbai's innings, it was the spinners Harbhajan Singh and Sanath Jayasuriya who derailed Chennai. They varied their pace and reined in the big hitters before Lasith Malinga kept the tail under control.
The pre-match drizzle in cloudy Cape Town influenced MS Dhoni's decision to field on a damp pitch, and though Mumbai's opening partnership yielded 39 in 5.4 overs, it wasn't convincing. Jayasuriya slashed and swiped and survived a run-out before he mowed fellow Sri Lankan Thilan Thushara to midwicket for 26.
Brief Score: Mumbai Indians 166 for 7 (Tendulkar 59*, Nayar 35) beat Chennai Super Kings 145 for 7 (Hayden 44, Malinga 3-15) by 19 runs.
