Dhoni’s heroics help Pune beat Kings XI, avoid last-place finish

MS Dhoni hit two sixes off the last two balls to ensure Rising Pune finished on a winning note, and avoided a last-place finish in the points table.

Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni single-handedly scripted Rising Pune Supergiants’ face-saving four-wicket win over Kings XI Punjab with a last-ball six to help them avoid a last-place finish in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in Visakhapatnam on Saturday.

Dhoni hit two sixes off the last two balls to ensure Rising Pune finished their miserable IPL campaign on a winning note, and avoided a last-place finish in the points table. (PTI)

Chasing 173, Pune never looked in contention, but Dhoni played the lone ranger with an unbeaten 32-ball 64 to secure an improbable win for the debutants.

Pune looked down and out at 86 for five in the 14th over before Dhoni brought out his best and smashed five sixes and four boundaries.

Needing 23 runs in the last over, Dhoni struck three sixes and a four. In the last ball, Pune required six for victory and the captain lofted one over the midwicket boundary.

However, for Dhoni, who had successfully led Chennai Super Kings in the previous editions of the tournament, mostly finishing in the top four besides winning the title twice, this has been his most disappointing campaign.

Earlier, Ravichandran Ashwin chipped in with a four-wicket haul to restrict KXIP to 172 for seven in the allotted 20 overs.

Captain Murali Vijay and Gurkeerat Mann hit fine half-centuries to take the team to a competitive total.

The loss has pushed Kings XI to the bottom of the table, with just eight points from 14 games.

Opting to bat, Vijay led from the front, scoring a 41-ball 59 that included four hits to the fence and three sixes. He also shared a valuable opening partnership of 60 runs with Hashim Amla (30).

Ashwin got the breakthrough for Pune when he dismissed Amla, and in the very next over wicketkeeper-batsman Wriddhiman Saha (3) was also sent back to the dressing room with Adam Zampa doing the damage.

But Vijay and Gurkeerat played with responsibility to steady the boat. The duo put on a 58-run stand for the third wicket before the skipper fell to Ashwin.

Ashwin further tightened the noose by dismissing Gurkeerat and new batsman David Miller in his next over.

None of the lower-order batsmen reached the double figures with Miller concluding a miserable tournament with another failure.

Ashwin was the pick of the bowlers for Pune with figures of four for 34 from four overs.