Chennnai.  Lasith Malinga grabbed four wickets to bowl Mumbai Indians to a 10-run victory over English county Somerset in their Twenty20 Champions League semi-final on Saturday.

The Sri Lankan paceman, known for bowling accurate yorkers with a slinging action, finished with 4-20 off four overs as Mumbai restricted Somerset to 150-7 after posting 160-5.

Australian opener Aiden Blizzard top-scored for Mumbai with a 39-ball 54 and New Zealand paceman James Franklin took two vital wickets in one over.

Craig Kieswetter made a fighting 62 off 46 balls with the help of one six and seven fours for Somerset.

“We got to a total where we could defend. Malinga and Franklin were fantastic in the end. It is a matter of a wicket or two in this format,” said Mumbai skipper Harbhajan Singh.

“The 19th over was important and Franklin bowled his heart out.”
The English county needed 22 runs to win off the last two overs with seven wickets in hand, but Franklin dismissed well-set Kieswetter and Jos Buttler (19) in the penultimate over while conceding only seven runs.

Kieswetter and James Hildreth (39) added 83 for the third wicket after man-of-the-match Malinga had jolted the top order with two quick wickets in his lively opening spell.

Somerset required 15 to win in the final over, but managed only four runs as Malinga removed Nick Compton and Murali Kartik.

“We have just finished pushing a top team, but we have provided some good entertainment,” said Somerset captain Alfonso Thomas.

“Malinga is a quality performer.”

Blizzard earlier helped Mumbai post a competitive total, hitting three sixes and five fours. Rajagopal Sathish (25 not out), Kieron Pollard (24) and Suryakumar Yadav (23 not out) were the other main scorers.

Meanwhile, Steven Finn geared up for an upcoming one-day series in India with a superb 4-28, including a hat-trick, as England posted a 56-run win in their opening practice match on Saturday

The Middlesex fast bowler, 22, removed Amol Shinde, Pagadala Naidu and Anwar Ahmed off successive balls in his eighth over as England dismissed a Hyderabad XI for 163 after scoring 219.

England middle-order batsman Ravi Bopara (73) and all-rounder Chris Woakes (46 not out and 2-30) also put in impressive performances.

The tourists will play one more warm-up game before the five-match series starts in Hyderabad on October 14.
England’s top order earlier flopped as Jonathan Trott (seven), skipper Alastair Cook (six) and Kevin Pietersen (16) all fell in the opening eight overs of the day-night game.

Bopara defied the hosts’ attack with an 82-ball knock, hitting one six and and three fours before falling in the 37th over.

England were struggling at 169-7 after Bopara’s dismissal, but Woakes helped the tourists cross the 200-mark with a 42-run stand for the eighth wicket with Graeme Swann (18).

Hyderabad pacemen Ahmed and Mohammed Khader took three wickets apiece, while seamer Ashish Reddy finished with two wickets.

Arjun Yadav top-scored for the hosts with 47.

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