Mumbai Indians beat Delhi Daredevils by eight wickets in their opening match of the Indian Premier League Twenty20 cricket tournament in Delhi today. After dismissing Delhi Daredevils for 95 all out in 17.4 overs, Mumbai Indians overhauled the victory target of 96 by making 99 for two in 16.5 overs. Sachin Tendulkar remained unbeaten on 46, while Rohit Sharma was not out on 27.

Lasith Malinga bowled yorkers at will as Mumbai Indians shot out a below par Delhi Daredevils for a meagre 95 in only 17.4 overs after electing to bat in the fourth match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Feroz Shah Kotla ground.

Malinga’s figures read a stunning 3.4-1-13-5 with four of them being cleaned up unplayable yorkers. It is the third best figure in the IPL after Sohail Tanveer (6/14 for Rajasthan Royals) and Anil Kumble’s (5/5) efforts.

For the capacity crowd at the Kotla, it turned out to be utterly disappointing as five of the Delhi Daredevils batsmen went without troubling the scorers.

Malinga’s effort was all the more laudable as Kotla track is considered to be not so conducive for pacers. After Kemar Roach’s hostile spell against the Netherlands in the World Cup, Malinga again showed that raw pace can be intimidating for the lesser known players.

Barring Sehwag, this Delhi Daredevils team doesn’t have good enough players to survive the rigours of top flight Twenty20 and it was proved in the manner they faced the Mumbai Indians bowling.

The Kotla track may be on the slower side but it was inept batting by the Delhi Daredevils top-order that led to their downfall. Sehwag had the crowd roaring when he danced down the track to effortlessly lift Harbhajan Singh over long-off for a six.

However, it was Malinga who pegged the home team back with a twin blow in the very second over. The normally dangerous David Warner (1) failed to dig out a toe-crushing yorker from Malinga.

The 17-year-old Unmukt Chand’s IPL debut was a forgettable one as he was out after a couple of deliveries. The youngster, who has never faced anything above medium fast at the domestic level, tried to smash a Malinga delivery that was fast and full. Unmukt’s feet were rooted in his crease and the ball cannoned into the middle stump.

In another IPL match at 8 P.M. tonight, Pune Warriors will take on Kings Eleven Punjab at the Dr. DY Patil Sports Academy in Mumbai.