Kohli and Salt deliver as Bengaluru battle past Mumbai in big IPL clash

[p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/salt-philip/KYBtscdT/"]Salt[/a] clobbered 78 off 36 balls with [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/kohli-virat/U7w3X0qp/"]Kohli[/a] playing the anchor role in his 50 as defending champions [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/royal-challengers-bengaluru/ObLbexsS/"]Bengaluru[/a] put on 120 runs for the first wicket and posted 240-4 at [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/mumbai-indians/2eZPzJH2/"]Mumbai[/a]'s Wankhede Stadium.[/p][p]Skipper [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/patidar-rajat/EgkyhNDJ/"]Rajat Patidar[/a]'s 53 off 20 balls and a late blitz by [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/david-tim/vBbcnzCQ/"]Tim David[/a], who hit an unbeaten 34, lifted Bengaluru to an imposing total.[/p][p][b]"The way Virat and Salt started the innings, I think that kept us in the driving seat,"[/b] said Patidar. [b]"Then a good cameo by me and Tim (David), I think that was a pure team effort."[/b][/p][embed guid="472a1316-6417-4809-87db-2ad0534f6cb7" url="https://x.com/IPL/status/2043397191579185499" social-type="twitter" /][p]The presence of Kohli and Mumbai veteran [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/sharma-rohit/zBLBQRyA/"]Rohit Sharma[/a] - two stalwarts who now feature only in ODIs for India and the IPL - added extra star power to the contest.[/p][p]Bengaluru restricted their opponents to 222-5 as five-time winners Mumbai suffered their third straight defeat in the tournament.[/p][p]England opener Salt was the aggressor at the start for Bengaluru, smacking six fours and six sixes. He was later named player of the match.[/p][p]Kohli let his partner do much of the damage while also bringing up his second half-century of the season in relatively sedate fashion.[/p][p]Salt hit three sixes in a row off New Zealand spinner [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/santner-mitchell/WrKSVkXJ/"]Mitchell Santner[/a] en route to his 25-ball fifty but a brief lull in scoring forced him to hit out, and he lost his wicket to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/thakur-shardul/xSJxPml2/"]Shardul Thakur[/a].[/p][p]Patidar then tore into the Mumbai attack with a string of sixes and, after Kohli's dismissal, raced to his fifty from just 17 balls. David then rounded off the innings with a late flourish.[/p][p]Mumbai started briskly courtesy of [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/rickelton-ryan/xOotum0C/"]Ryan Rickelton[/a]'s 37 but soon lost steam after Rohit retired hurt due to a hamstring problem.[/p][p]Kohli did not take to the field for Bengaluru after his innings due to an ankle injury.[/p][p]Leg-spinner [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/sharma-suyash/jgoM0ECj/"]Suyash Sharma[/a] struck twice in one over to dismiss Rickelton and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/varma-tilak/06FFf1DG/"]Tilak Varma[/a].[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/yadav-suryakumar/jik1yPzM/"]Suryakumar Yadav[/a] (33) and skipper [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/pandya-hardik/OWVGP0P6/"]Hardik Pandya[/a] (40) attempted to drag the chase back on track in a brisk partnership of 47, but once both fell, Mumbai slipped behind the required rate.[/p][p][b]"I think in the last couple of games, as a bowling unit or even as a batting unit, we've been catching up in the game rather than leading the game," [/b]said Pandya.[/p][p]Impact substitute [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/rutherford-sherfane/8t5kwJcK/"]Sherfane Rutherford[/a] made a valiant unbeaten 71, blasting four sixes in the last over, but the knock came too late for Mumbai.[/p][p]In the first match of the day, [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/buttler-joseph/bVycigXQ/"]Jos Buttler[/a] struck his second successive half-century to guide the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/gujarat-lions/WrQXOufC/"]Gujarat[/a] Titans to a comfortable seven-wicket win over [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/lucknow-super-giants/juEriKhI/"]Lucknow Super Giants[/a].[/p][p]Buttler hit 60 off 37 balls and put on 84 runs for the second wicket with skipper [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/gill-shubman/KOAQiuhe/"]Shubman Gill[/a] (56) as Gujarat chased down 165 with eight balls to spare at Lucknow's Ekana Stadium.[/p][embed guid="1d056b57-9722-4776-8747-a5d581500508" url="https://x.com/IPL/status/2043327042239012948" social-type="twitter" /]