One of the biggest surprising things about this year’s IPL is how badly Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings have played. Yes, we know the drill, these are the two biggest teams in the tournament who start slow and yes, they know how to win and also that they might not even be panicking that early but it’s 4 games with 0 wins. A couple of losses here and there and their new season might even be before it starts.
This is what Mumbai Indians will come bearing in mind when they come to play against this spirited Punjab Kings line-up who themselves are coming on the back of a loss courtesy of Rahul Tewatia (and Odean Smith if we may dare say)
Mumbai will know that this is not that old Punjab side and they can do some serious damage both with the bat and the ball. Punjab on the other hand will be vary of the fact that this is not the old Mumbai Indians team as well and that will give them some serious confidence.
Chennai Super Kings came up with a majestic performance against a strong RCB lineup to win the game when they seemed to be facing down the barrel of yet another defeat. Mumbai should take inspiration from that and show why they are the best side of the IPL. And trust Rohit Sharma and company to do exactly just that.
Mumbai Indians vs Punjab Kings – Pitch Report
The MCA surface has been a high scoring venue but the bowlers have also enjoyed success here. It has a lot of runs with a short boundary on one side and also it has a good carry and bounce. However, the pitch can also become double paced with the number of games being played here. Winning the toss and opting to bat first might not be that bad an idea on this kind of surface.
MI vs PBKS, Match 23 Probable Playing XIs:
Mumbai Indians
Rohit Sharma(c), Ishan Kishan(w), Dewald Brevis, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Kieron Pollard, Fabian Allen/Tim David, Murugan Ashwin, Jaydev Unadkat, Jasprit Bumrah, Basil Thampi/ Tymal Mills
Punjab Kings
Mayank Agarwal(c), Shikhar Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Jonny Bairstow(w), Jitesh Sharma, Shahrukh Khan, Odean Smith, Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar, Vaibhav Arora, Arshdeep Singh
