Preview
Three-time champions of the coveted Indian Premier League(IPL) title, Mumbai Indians are set to host the Delhi Capitals, the franchise with a new-look. The Rohit Sharma-led side will take on Shreyas Iyer’s Delhi team on Sunday, March 24. It being the third match of the season, will begin at 8 pm.
The hosts have been hit by injuries and unavailability of key pacers and additionally, the workload management of players like Bumrah and Hardik Pandya have caused a confusing situation with regard to the team composition.
On the second day of play in the IPL 2019, the two teams will meet at the Wankhede Stadium to begin their respective campaigns in the 12th edition of the Indian Premier League. Mumbai who had a disappointing season last year, finishing 5th, and will be hoping to get things rolling from the start. Delhi on the other hand, have revamped n their franchise and will want to put in a much better showing than their previous Daredevils avatar.
Coming to the teams, Mumbai have added the legendary Yuvraj Singh to their squad, which already has a few big-hitters in Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Ben Cutting and Ishan Kishan. It will be interesting to see if Yuvraj makes the XI. Rohit Sharma will lead the charge at the top with Evin Lewis or Quinton de Kock. With Lasith Malinga missing the first 6 games, the onus of pace bowling will fall on Jasprit Bumrah and Mitchell McClenaghan, while Krunal Pandya and rising star Mayank Markande will be the spin options. It will be interesting to see how Mumbai rotates its squad through the IPL with Rohit, Bumrah, and Hardik all going to the World Cup. They should be cautious about getting overworked; especially Hardik who has missed two recent ODI series due to a recurring back injury.
On the other side, Delhi Capitals have Shikhar Dhawan in their arsenal and the left-handed opener would be keen to get into good nick before the World Cup. The Capitals have a spate of young Turks whose performance shall be key to their cause, including captain Shreyas Iyer, keeper Rishabh Pant, opener Prithvi Shaw and Nepalese mystery-spinner Sandeep Lamichhane. Meanwhile, experienced campaigners like Chris Morris and Amit Mishra will lend stability to the team. The likes of Trent Boult, Ishant Sharma, and Kagiso Rabada make Delhi’s pace attack look like a potent force.
Probable XIs
Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma, Quinton de Kock, Suryakumar Yadav, Yuvraj Singh, Keiron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Ben Cutting, Mitchell McClenaghan, Mayank Markande, Jasprit Bumrah
Delhi Capitals: Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Colin Ingram/ Colin Munro, Sherfane Rutherford, Axar Patel, Harshal Patel, Amit Mishra, Sandeep Lamicchane, Trent Boult
Prediction
According to data, the Mumbai Indians are way ahead of the Delhi-based franchise when it comes to the home ground of the Rohit Sharma-led team. Statistically, Mumbai have a clear edge at the Wankhede Stadium, as the Delhi Capitals have a very weak record here: a 2/6 Win-Loss ratio. Despite the fact that Mumbai lost both games to the then Delhi ‘Daredevils’(now Delhi Capitals) in the previous season of the T20 League, the odds seem to be 60-40 in favour of the Mumbai Indians. And as the margin suggests, this is a game that could go either way but the death overs are going to be the deciding factor.
