Introduction-
At a juncture when every match is creating enough chaos in the points table, comes a match which is less significant, at least for Gujarat Titans, who are comfortably sitting at top of the table. But Mumbai Indians can't relax to see themselves at number four in the table, as the contest for the playoffs is still wide open. Will Mumbai be able to take revenge of defeat against Gujarat in the first leg or Gujarat will make it a double? Let’s see how both teams are looking ahead of the match at iconic Wankhede stadium.
Team Previews-
Mumbai Indians-
Mumbai Indians are only doing what they are known for, but this time with a flawed team. After languishing in the bottom half of the table till around half of the season, they have reached number 3 in roaring style. Out of the last 4 matches, they have won three, and in some style- breaching the target of 200 or above. No other team, in a single season of IPL, has successfully chased the target of 200+ before.
Six different batsmen have scored at least a half century for Mumbai Indians, with Tim David missed the cut off marginally as his Highest Score of the season so far is 45*.
Leader of the batting chart for MI-Surya Kumar Yadav- has turned the table emphatically, as he has amassed 310 runs in the last 6 innings, compared to only 66 in the first five innings. Surya has been the chevalier of MI’s three record chases with a fifty in each of the games, and will be itching to do more in coming games.
While Rohit Sharma has been massively disappointing with the bat, his partner Ishan Kishan is looking to get his touch back, as the southpaw has played his part in recent wins of Mumbai Indians.
Cause of concern for MI has been their lackluster bowling. Apart from Piyush Chawla who has been phenomenal, none of the bowlers has stood up. In the last 5 matches when they bowled first, the least score they conceded was 199, against RCB in the most recent match.
Gujarat Titans-
Titans are the only team who has not lost two games in a row in IPL 2023. It tells about the consistency of this team, and how good they are to rectify the flaws within them.
While Shubhman Gill has been the star with the bat with 469 runs so far, the likes of Hardik Pandya, Wriddhiman Saha, Vijay Shankar have contributed significantly. And David Miller, Abhinav Manohar and Rahul Tewatia have been able to up the ante when needed. In fact, Rahul Tewatia is one of only two batsmen to score at a strike rate of 200+, with the cut off of 30 balls played. The first batsman is MS Dhoni.
In bowling, as many as 4 different bowlers have picked at least 10 wickets for GT, which is most by any team. Mohammad Shami and Rashid are the chart leaders among bowlers with most wickets, while Noor Ahmed and Mohit Sharma have also delivered match winning spells, to make GT bowling unit an all round one. The potent bowling attack of Titans will surely test MI’s fiery batting unit, like they did in the first match between these two teams, when they restricted MI to 152 in chase of 207. But things will be different at the batting paradise Wankhede.
Probable Playing XIs-
Mumbai Indians-
Rohit Sharma (C), Ishan Kishan (WK), Surya Kumar Yadav, Nehal Wadhera, Cameroon Green, Tim David, Chris Jordan, Piyush Chawla, Akash Madhwal, Kumar Kartikeya, Jason Behrendorff (Impact subs- Vishnu Vinod and Raghav Goyal)
Gujarat Titans-
Wriddhiman Saha (WK), Shubhman Gill, Hardik Pandya (C), Vijay Shankar, David Miller, Abhinav Manohar, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Mohit Sharma, Noor Ahmed, Mohammad Shami (Impact subs- Jayant Yadav, Alzarri Joseph, Dasun Shanaka and Srikar Bharat)
Interesting facts and milestones-
- Rohit Sharma needs 106 runs to complete 11000 runs in T20 cricket.
- Piyush Chawla needs 7 wickets to complete 300 wickets in T20 cricket.
- Hardik Pandya is two wickets away from 150 T20 wickets.
- Rashid Khan is 3 wickets away from completing 550 wickets in T20 cricket.
- Rashid Khan needs 52 runs to complete 2000 runs in T20 cricket.
Pitch and Weather Report-
The pitch at the Wankhede has been kind of belter, as batsmen have enjoyed playing their trade here. Out of 5 matches so far, 4 have been won by the team batting second. The temperature will roam between 31 and 33 degree celsius during the match time. And no chances of rain is expected during the course of the match.
Venue- Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
Date and Time- 12th May 2023, 7:30 PM Onwards
Live Streaming- Star Sports and Jio Cinema
Dream XI team-
