Mumbai Magic

So there we have it; after six and a half weeks, the group stage of this year's Indian Premier League is over and the top four are through to the play-offs.

We've had super overs galore - including three in one day - and each team has had its ups and downs in one of the most tightly contested IPL tournaments since it launched in 2008.

Saturday's nine-wicket win over Delhi Capitals confirmed Mumbai Indians' place at the top of the table.

But there was little time to celebrate in the Mumbai dressing room afterwards, with coach Mahela Jayawardene and his support staff already turning their attention to the knockout stages...

Two more wins and reigning champions Mumbai will have five IPL trophies to their name.
Kohli up for the challenge

It's not often both the winning and losing team are happy with the outcome of a result, but that's exactly what happened in Monday's clash between Delhi and Royal Challengers Bangalore.

RCB lost the game, which also meant four defeats on the bounce, but ensured qualification via run-rate by taking the match to the final over.

Captain Virat Kohli knows his team have to improve; they need three wins in a row to lift their first ever IPL trophy…

In 2019, Delhi qualified for the play-offs for the first time in seven years, but with back-to-back top four finishes, what's the secret to their success?

"A great bunch of guys," say two of their seamers...

Delhi will take on Mumbai on Thursday for a place in the final on 10 November.
Joy for Sunrisers, dismay for KKR

Third spot in the table went to Sunrisers Hyderabad.

They needed a win against Mumbai on Tuesday - and they did it in style.

Sunrisers thrashed the champions by 10 wickets and with captain David Warner and fellow opener Wriddhiman Saha smashing it at the top of the order, could they be the team to beat?

That win also sent Kolkata Knight Riders, captained by England's Eoin Morgan, crashing out of the tournament...

Sunrisers will take on RCB on Friday. It will be goodbye to the losers, while the winner will then have to beat the losing team from the Mumbai v Delhi clash.
Is Warner misunderstood?

As for Warner, the Australia batsman is a bit of a pantomime villain with English fans, but is there a case for the defence?

Warner's mischievous behaviour seems to go down well with his IPL team-mates.

Here he is, alongside England's Jonny Bairstow, enjoying a luscious latte courtesy of New Zealand star Kane Williamson...

An Englishman, Aussie and Kiwi all enjoying a brew together; only in the IPL.

When Warner isn't too busy commentating on Williamson's coffee-making skills, he's hiding behind curtains and taking team-building activities way too seriously...

Sri Lanka great Muttiah Muralitharan trying to get a biscuit to slide down from his forehead and into his mouth and West Indies all-rounder Jason Holder doing the hokey cokey; does it get any better than that?
Record-breaking Gayle's still got it

West Indies' Chris Gayle had some doubters going into this year's tournament.

The 41-year-old is a T20 legend and one of the best performers in IPL history, but would age finally catch up with the 'Universe Boss?'

Nope.

In Friday's defeat by Rajasthan Royals, Gayle notched his third half-century of the tournament as he blasted 99 from 63 balls.

He also became the first man to hit 1,000 T20 sixes, a feat which cements his legacy as one of, if not the, greatest T20 player of all time. This is how the cricketing world reacted…

Gayle was dismissed one short of his century by England and Royals seamer Jofra Archer. As with almost everything in life, Archer predicted this many years ago…

There was a lot of respect between the pair; Gayle and Archer shook hands as the Kings XI batsman made his way back to the dugout…

Kings XI's rollercoaster tournament was officially over after their loss to Chennai Super Kings on Sunday but the Universe Boss had a message for his fans...

Ecclestone learns Hindi ahead of Women's T20 Challenge

On Wednesday the opening game of this year's Women's T20 Challenge kicks off as Supernovas take on Velocity.

The players, including overseas representatives from seven countries, arrived in UAE a couple of weeks ago…

And after a period of mandatory quarantine, Supernovas star Jemi Rodrigues and her team-mates seemed pleased to just see a bit of daylight…

The women have since been putting the practice in on the field…

And bonding off it…

Trailblazers have the world's number one-ranked T20 bowler, Sophie Ecclestone, in their squad while her England team-mate Danni Wyatt will be playing for Velocity.

And Ecclestone has been trying to overcome some of the language barriers by brushing up on her Hindi...

Mind you, she fares better at learning a new language than England and KKR batsman Tom Banton.

In celebration of KKR owner - and Indian movie star - Shah Rukh Khan's birthday, Banton tries his best at some classic Bollywood lines...

Styris 1-0 Royals

Ahead of this year's tournament, former New Zealand all-rounder Scott Styris predicted how the table might look at the end of the group stage.

At the time, the Rajasthan Royals were not overly happy about being placed last by Styris...

But after the Royals finished bottom, it was Styris who had the last laugh...

'You guys deserve a standing ovation for talking about it'

And finally, a huge well done to the Royals and their players for putting together this incredible and open discussion

on a subject often regarded as taboo in India and around the world.

From men buying sanitary products to understanding the menstrual cycle, Robin Uthappa, Jos Buttler, Rahul Tewatia and David Miller did their part in trying to break the stigma around periods.

The candid conversation went down well with fans on social media...