IPL 2019: Top 5 Batting knocks of the Season

#3 Kieron Pollard's whirlwind 83 off 31 vs Kings XI Punjab

Pollard helped MI overcome the odds against Kings XI Punjab

Mumbai Indians vs Kings XI Punjab is the clash with the most even head-to-head record in the IPL, where MI just edges KXIP with 12 wins to 11.

At the Wankhede Stadium, it's an even four wins each. Both these sides had already played each other in the tournament with KXIP comfortably running out as victors. Now back at their home ground, it was revenge time for MI.

Batting first KXIP set a daunting target of 198 for MI, courtesy of a century by opener KL Rahul.

MI started off their chase rather slowly and was 56-2 in 7.4 overs when Pollard came out to the crease.

He took his time getting his eye in scoring just three in his first five balls, but broke the shackles the next delivery he faced as Pollard smashed Ravichandran Ashwin for a six over long-on.

That was all he needed to get going as he smashed Sam Curran for two sixes and a four in the next over.

Pollard took quite a liking towards Ashwin's off-spinners as he muscled two of his deliveries to the stands, collecting 19 of his over.

By the end of the 14th over, MI still needed 70 off 36 balls and to everyone's dismay the next two overs saw Pollard play just three legal deliveries as the required run-rate jumped over 13 runs per over.

During that time period, both the Pandya brothers, leaving Pollard with pacer Alzarri Joseph as a partner at the other end.

That didn't deter him from his natural game as he smashed Curran for two maximums in the 17th to bring up his half-century off 22 balls.

32 were needed off the last 12 balls, the penultimate over was being bowled by Sam Curran, Pollard started off with a boundary before smashing two sixes on either side of the ground to bring the equation down to 15 off the last over.

Ankit Rajpoot was handed the responsibility of bowling the last over with Pollard on strike and he started off in the worst way possible, bowling a juicy full-toss which Pollard dispatched over deep mid-wicket to make matters worse he overstepped, so MI got seven runs without a legal delivery being bowled and equation came down to eight required off six balls.

Pollard seemed to be in a hurry as he smashed the next ball to the fine leg boundary and MI was one hit away from a miraculous victory but unfortunately the Windies all-rounder perished trying to clear the ropes on the next ball and finished with 83 off 31 balls with three fours and 10 sixes at a strike rate of 267.74.