The Mumbai Indians meet the Kolkata Knight Riders for the first time in the 11th edition of the Indian Premier League on Sunday.
With 3 wins in 9 games, the road ahead for MI look really difficult. However, if there is one team that can win it from here, it has to be the Mumbai Indians who have done it in the past. In their last encounter against the Kings XI Punjab, MI showed some form with the ball and the bat and would look to take that confidence in to this match at Wankhede Stadium.
KKR on the other hand are at the top half of the table so far but have a few issues to address in their team as well. With 5 wins and 4 losses, KKR too have not stitched too many wins together in the tournament. However, they have won their last 2 games chasing challenging totals and would try and make it 3 in a row to increase their chances of getting a place in the Final four.
The big batsmen for MI have been Suryakumar Yadav, Evin Lewis, Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma. Yadav and Sharma form the pillar of the MI batting unit. Whenever MI has done well this season, Rohit has delivered for them which goes on to show how important he is to that batting order. Yadav has been in good touch throughout the season and MI will hope that it continues for the remainder of the tournament. Evin Lewis and Ishan Kishan haven’t shown consistency and Lewis’s form at the top can be a big area of concern for MI. Ishan too hasn’t performed as per expectation in the second half of the season. JP Duminy, will have no time to waste when he gets the opportunity to bat for MI because it is now or never for MI.
Despite all the stars in the team, Shubman Gill struck a brilliant half century in the previous match and could be the key player for KKR tonight with the bat. Skipper Dinesh Karthik has developed a healthy habit of finishing off matches for KKR and the franchise would be very happy with the way he has been batting during the death overs. Sunil Narine’s boost at the top has been monumental for KKR wins on many occasions and the franchise would expect him to continue in a similar fashion in matches to come ahead.
Jasprit Bumrah will be the impact bowler for MI. Bumrah is coming from an excellent outing in Indore against the Kings XI Punjab and that might help his cause against the KKR. Mayank Markande has been a great find by the MI think tank and Rohit would that he has saved his best game for the matches to come.
Sunil Narine against Rohit Sharma could be an interesting battle to watch out for. The spin trio of Narine, Piyush Chawla and Kuldeep Yadav who also happen to bowl the death overs for KKR in their previous game, should be the key at Wankhede.
The day games at Wankhede are usually high scoring encounters. Expect another run feast. Broadcast Starts at 16:00 Hours (IST).
