All the experience in the world could not save M.S. Dhoni and his hitherto dominant Chennai Super Kings. They were anything but super in the final of the Indian Premier League, suffering a slow, lingering death at the hands of the Mumbai Indians. The championship showpiece, which many believed would be another cliffhanger, ultimately proved horribly anticlimactic.

The damage had long since been done. After being outplayed in the midweek playoff qualifier, Mumbai roared back to tame the Lions for the third time in four attempts this year. The Indians had glimpsed the summit before. Finally, they are standing on top of the mountain.

They took the tough route to the top. Mumbai were soon in trouble and the decision to bat first appeared to be a ghastly misjudgment. The arrival of Kieron Pollard changed all that. The West Indian all-rounder stroked a boundary off his first delivery and didn’t look back. Pollard’s rapid, unbeaten 60 at least gave the Indians’ bowling attack something to defend.

Lasith Malinga got the message. The Sri Lankan’s devastating first over rocked CSK to its core. Mike Hussey, the leading scorer in IPL, lasted just two balls and his replacement, Suresh Raina, among the League’s most consistent run-makers, went for a golden duck. Malinga narrowly missed a hat-trick but the writing was on the wall in capital letters.

Chennai would never recover. By the time Dhoni arrived to survey the wreckage, the fat lady was warming up in the wings. Dhoni could, and probably should, have promoted himself up the batting order so his own half-century could have saved the day. In the context of the game it was meaningless as the required run-rate skyrocketed out of control.

In just a few short weeks, Mumbai has gone from chumps to champs. The all-star experiment turned into an embarrassing flop. Ricky Ponting and Sachin Tendulkar, brought together at the start of the season to make the telling difference for Mumbai, played no part.

They were the most famous, and probably the best paid cheerleaders at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens. Tendulkar’s injured hand kept him on the sidelines, while Ponting relinquished the captaincy weeks ago after an inexplicable loss of form. His successor, Rohit Sharma, did a remarkable job of pulling the team together and getting it over the finishing line for its first IPL title.

Tendulkar immediately announced his retirement from IPL cricket. Having finally got his hands on the trophy, the Little Master is ready to call it a day. He doesn’t need anyone to tell him his legendary talent is on the wane. 2013 represented his poorest return in terms of runs scored from a full season – a far cry from the heights of 2010 and 2011.

Ironically, Chennai picked up the awards for leading scorer and wicket taker. Hussey compiled more than 700 runs while Dwayne Bravo claimed 32 wickets – including four in the Championship game. Both would return the respective Orange and Purple caps in exchange for a kiss on the IPL trophy.

Shane Watson was also recognized. The Australian all-rounder was deservedly named Player of the Series even though his Rajasthan team fell one game short. “Watto” was one of only seven players to top 500 runs and also took 13 wickets – his best return since the title-winning season of 2008.

So IPL 6 is in the books. A season, which featured a world record batting performance from Chris Gayle, ended with a new name on the trophy. Mumbai has got the monkey off its back. It will be replaced with a target in twelve months time.

At least nobody paid to watch our humiliation.

Not so for professional cricketers. A packed stadium and millions of viewers gathered to watch the marquee matchup of the weekend in the Indian Premier League. TV executives, corporate sponsors and fans around the world licked their lips in anticipation.

When the Mumbai Indians face the Chennai Super Kings there is an all-star feel about it. The presence of players such as Sachin Tendulkar, M.S. Dhoni, Lasith Malinga and Mike Hussey lends true authenticity to a rivalry which grows more intense with every passing year.

Mumbai has never won the IPL. The Indians have come close on several occasions but never managed to cross the finish line in first place. This year’s brainwave, to import Australian legend Ricky Ponting, backfired spectacularly, but Mumbai has enough in reserve to at least qualify for the fast approaching playoffs.

The Indians have another trick up their sleeve. Despite Chennai’s superiority in the IPL, the Lions have never won a game in Mumbai. For some inexplicable reason, the fog descends and the Super Kings cannot see their way to victory at the Wankhede Stadium.

Surely this was the moment. After seven straight wins and a healthy lead at the top of the standings, here was Chennai’s chance to finally redress the balance and put Mumbai in its place.

It began promisingly. Chennai restricted Mumbai to less than seven an over and a target of 140 was well within reach. None of their previous five totals had dipped below 160 so the Super Kings were perfectly positioned for another comfortable victory.

What followed was barely believable. The writing was on the wall earlier than we expected. Mike Hussey – Mr. Cricket himself – was dropped three times in the very first over. The unlucky bowler, Mitchell Johnson would have his revenge – removing three of the top four Chennai batters for a combined total of just two.

While Hussey and Dhoni were in the middle, the Lions had time and talent to recover. But the epidemic of poor stroke choices affected everyone and once they were gone with barely 50 on the board it was merely a matter of time.

The wreckage of a reply, and it could have been worse save a last wicket partnership of 25, finally came to a pathetic halt at 79 all out – the worst team total in this season’s tournament and Chennai’s lowest ever score in IPL history.

There are no extra points for humiliating the opposition of course. From a psychological standpoint it could have a bearing should Mumbai and Chennai come face to face in the playoffs. The Lions have proved they are the strongest team in the competition but the Indians know they are beatable on any given Sunday.

Elsewhere, the Rajasthan Royals continue to impress. A veteran and a kid combined to see off the Pune Warriors. The 40-year-old Rahul Dravid hammered another half century in the winning cause, while 18-year-old rookie Sanju Samson kept his nerve at the death stroking his first ball to the boundary with an elegant cover drive. Dravid, himself, would have been impressed by the youngster’s raw talent.

Chris Gayle remains every bowler’s worst nightmare. Another quick fire 50 from the Jamaican superstar laid the foundation for a big total against the King’s Xl Punjab. For once it was not enough. South African David Miller smashed an unbeaten century off just 38 balls to see the home team triumph in Mohali.