HYDERABAD: Mumbai Indians gifted birthday boy and skipper Sachin Tendulkar a 37-run victory in an Indian Premier League match against Deccan Chargers Sunday. In another match, leg-spinner Shane Warne grabbed 3-16 to help Rajasthan Royals beat Kochi Tuskers Kerala by eight wickets in Jaipur for their third win in seven games. It was Mumbai's fifth win in six matches. Rohit Sharma smashed three sixes and five fours in his 34-ball 56 not out and Lasith Malinga took 3-9 off four tight overs as Mumbai restricted Deccan to 135-8 after scoring 172-4 in Hyderabad. Skipper Kumar Sangakkara top-scored with 34 for Deccan, which suffered its fourth defeat in six matches. Mumbai was earlier tottering at 70-4 before Sharma led the recovery with a 102-run stand off just 65 balls for the unfinished fifth wicket with Australian Andrew Symonds, who scored an unbeaten 44 off 33 balls. Tendulkar, who turned 38 Sunday, cracked four boundaries in his 24-ball 28. Rajasthan faced no difficulty in achieving a modest 110-run target, with openers Shane Watson (49) and Rahul Dravid (44) being the main run-getters. Parthiv Patel top-scored with 32 for Kochi, which suffered its third defeat in six matches. Brief scores: Mumbai Indians 172-4 (R. Sharma 56 not out, A. Symonds 44 not out, D. Jacobs 32, S. Tendulkar 28; A. Mishra 2-14). Deccan Chargers 135-8 (Kumar Sangakkara 34, A. Mishra 25 not out, S. Dhawan 25, D. Christian 21; L. Malinga 3-9). Kochi Tuskers Kerala 109 in 20 overs (P. Patel 32, R. Jadeja 22; S. Warne 3-16, S. Trivedi 3-19). Rajasthan Royals 111-2 in 14.1 overs (S. Watson 49, R. Dravid 44). – Agence France
