Yet another must-win encounter is at the store tonight. Two wounded teams are locking horns with each other in quest of Playoffs. The loss for defending champions will see them out of the tournament while the win would help them stay alive in the series.
Kings XI Punjab – A must-win encounter
The way things had turned out for Punjab would surely hurt each individual of the team. They were once the serious competitors for a top 2 finish, now, they found themselves in a soup after bagging 5 loses in their previous 6 games. Perhaps, there over smartness cost them dearly.
The batting department has been wayward in their previous encounter at home. Royal Challengers Bangalore made fun of their batting order in a ground which has a rich history for the batsmen. It was quite evident that Punjab was over-dependent on the openers. In order to break down their losing streak, bowling department should come to the party at any cost.
The likes of Aaron Finch, Karun Nair and Mayank Agarwal lost their touch at the crucial which became an area of concern for Punjab side. The bowling department also needs an immediate attention by the management who are finding it tough to deliver when it mattered the most.
Mujeeb’s injury came at the wrong time and the Indian bowlers are not finding the right lengths to hit. However, a wholesome change in KXIP is expected when they tackle star-studded Mumbai Indians on Wednesday evening.
Mumbai Indians – A do or die clash
Surprisingly, Mumbai Indians were knocked down by Rajasthan Royals at their fortress, Wankhede. They have got a stupendous batting line-up which would be a dream lineup but still, they found themselves on the wrong side of the things when Rajasthan bowlers hit those right lengths.
However, in order to stay alive in the tourney, a couple of those batsmen need to pull up their socks. Rohit Sharma has been inconsistent with his bat while the strike rotation in middle overs is being the biggest area of concern for the team despite Hardik and Krunal are whacking it out nicely.
Coming to bowling department, all the bowlers found their rhythm nicely but the brilliance of Jos Buttler made their task heavier. Bumrah got back to his own while Hardik Pandya is striking those wickets at regular intervals of time.
It is intriguing to see whether Mumbai Indians stick to JP Duminy or will opt for someone like Kieron Pollard who can tonk the ball right from the word go. Though Duminy has been a good striker of the ball, Mumbai never used him efficiently to make the things in favour of the home side.
With the Net-Run-Rate is expected to make its way, Mumbai Indians would love to seal the victory with a decent margin against inconsistent Punjab. All in all, a cracker of the night is at the store.
Match Details:
Possible Playing XI:
MI: Evin Lewis, Suryakumar Yadav, Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya, Pollard, Ishan Kishan, Krunal Pandya, Ben Cutting, Mitchell McClenaghan, Mayank Markande, Jasprit Bumrah.
KXIP: Lokesh Rahul (wk), Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, Karun Nair, Aaron Finch, Marcus Stoinis, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin (c), Andrew Tye, Mohit Sharma, Ankit Rajpoot.
Pitch Report – Traditionally, Wankhede always been a batting paradise with a bit of assistance to spinners.
Weather Report – No rain is in the forecast. A perfect evening to play the game. Dew will play its role.
Date & Time – May 16th, 2018, 20:00 IST
Venue – Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
Live Telecast – Star Sports Network, Jio and Hotstar Premium customers