Maxwell produces more IPL magic in final-ball thriller

Glenn Maxwell continued his wizardry in Friday's final IPL group matches, plundering his sixth IPL fifty of the year as he combined with Royal Challengers Bangalore teammate Srikar Bharat for a match-winning partnership in a remarkable last-ball, seven-wicket victory over Delhi Capitals in Dubai.

The duo produced a 111-run stand with Bharat clearing the ropes on the final ball of the match to seal victory and book a spot in the 'Eliminator' playoffs match against Kolkata Knight Riders on Monday.

Ricky Ponting's Capitals side had made a blistering start to the final night of the regular season as openers Prithvi Shaw (48) and Shikhar Dhawan (43) raced to 0-88 after 10 overs, before Hashal Patel (1-34 off 4) made the breakthrough.

India seamer Mohammed Siraj was the pick of the bowlers for RCB with 2-25 from his four overs, as the Delhi batting line-up - once again without Steve Smith in the side - made their way to 5-164 at the end of their 20 overs.

Bangalore made a shaky start to the run chase with Anrich Nortje dismissing Devdutt Padikkal and skipper Virat Kohli to have the score reading 2-6 as AB de Villiers made his way to the crease.

The South African produced a run-a-ball 26 before Axar Patel made the key breakthrough.

The dismissal brought the in-form Maxwell to the crease with Bharat, still needing 110 runs off 63 deliveries.

Maxwell rode some luck on his way to 45 off 30 balls before taking strike in the final over - bowled by Avesh Khan - with RCB needing 15 runs to win.

The Australian crunched his eighth boundary of the night and then brought up his fourth half-century in the past five games, before Bharat took over the strike.

Needing six off the last ball, Khan bowled a wide delivery down the leg side which Bharat lofted back over the fast bowler's head for a straight six, much to the delight of his captain Virat Kohli.

"Unbelievable," Kohli said. "It was a game where we had nothing to lose, but still to lose early wickets and do well against a team at the top of the table is good. We've beaten them twice this season."

Maxwell's knock, off 33 balls, saw him take his tally to the season to 498 runs, making him the fifth top scorer in the league in this year's edition. Only KL Rahul, with 30 sixes, smashed more than the Victorian's 21.

Meanwhile, defending champions Mumbai Indians have failed to reach the playoffs, being edged out on run rate - but they didn't go down without a fight in Abu Dhabi.

Mumbai, winners for the last two years, realistically had no chance of making it into the final four but they produced some fireworks as they hammered Sunrisers Hyderabad by 42 runs.

Needing a miraculous victory by more than 170 runs to displace Kolkata Knight Riders from the top four in the standings, Mumbai rode on Ishan Kishan's remarkable fastest half-century of the season to make a brave attempt with their 9-235 total.

Kishan raised his fifty off just 16 balls and went on to score 84 off 32 balls with 11 fours and four sixes before he was caught behind in the 10th over.

Then Mumbai kept on accelerating through Suryakumar Yadav's blistering 82 off 40 balls to post a hefty total, hoping that their bowlers could then skittle out the Sunrisers.

But Hyderabad, last in the standings with only three wins in 14 group matches, couldn't oblige and actually looked threatening in the run chase - if only briefly - before they were restricted to 8-193.

The result ensured that Mumbai and Kolkata both finished with seven wins, but the Knight Riders ousted the five-time champions on net run rate.

Kolkata will next take on Royal Challengers Bangalore in an eliminator on Monday in Sharjah with only the winner progressing.

Before then, table-topping Delhi Capitals and Chennai Super Kings will meet on Sunday in Dubai in the first qualifier, with the winners going straight to the final and the losers facing the Kolkata-Bangalore victors.

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