Simmons blasts Mumbai to victory

In-form West Indies batsman Lendl Simmons smashed the first century of the Indian Premier League (IPL) yesterday to give Mumbai Indians a slim chance of advancing to the play-off stage of the competition.

Simmons played shots all over the park to complete an unbeaten even century, leading a run chase that swept Mumbai to a seven-wicket victory over Kings XI Punjab, the current table toppers.

The attacking Trinidadian batsman hit 14 fours and two sixes from the 61 balls he faced to carry Mumbai safely to 159 off 18 overs after Punjab scored 156 for eight in their 20 overs at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium.