Let the battle begin. After a super contest between Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) last night, now the stage is set for the famous “Maharashtra Derby” between Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS) and Mumbai Indians (MI) tonight.
IPL 2017: Rising Pune Supergiant vs Mumbai Indians – Preview #IPL
Rising Pune Supergiant will certainly try its best to beat the mighty Mumbai Indians at home to start their second IPL season in style. All eyes will be towards the skipper Steven Smith as he replaced MS Dhoni for the top post earlier this year.
Likewise, Mumbai is also ready to regain the title back that it lost last year. Skipper Rohit Sharma, now fully cured from injury, will certainly play an important role in this match.
Team Combinations for Mumbai Indians (MI) and Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS)
Mumbai Indians (MI) will have to stay cautious from English cricketer Ben Stokes – the most valuable player of the ongoing IPL – Pune bought him for whooping 14.5-crore at the IPL auction 2017. He is a proven match winner and can really turn the table with his awe-inspiring batting and bowling abilities.
Then MI will also have to restrict the specialist batsmen like Faf du Plessis, Smith, Dhoni and Rahane – all of them are in explosive form these days. For the first time ever, MS Dhoni will play as a free man without any captaincy pressure. So, some helicopter shots are on the cards from him. He is a smart finisher and well experienced to handle any pressure at ease.
Also Read: IPL 2017: Complete fixtures, schedule and time in IST with venue details
However, Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS) will certainly miss Ashwin’s magnificent spin bowling, but the Protea’s spin wizard Imran Tahir is expected make up for it in tonight’s match. Also, some good bowling from Ashok Dinda and leg spinner Adam Zampa can be expected.
Mumbai Indians have good fast bowling combination of Jasprit Bumrah, Tim Southee and Mitchell McClenaghan. Then they also have the veteran off-spinner Harbhajan Singh in the side – who can bowl quality off spin deliveries irrespective of the venues. But no doubt, MI batsmen will be the major attractions in tonight’s match. Reportedly, Lasith Malinga will miss today’s match due to his national service for Sri Lanka in second T20 against Bangladesh.
Captain Rohit Sharma, Lendl Simmons, Pollard and Jos Buttler (having career strike rate of 147 in T20s) will be the core of Mumbai’s batting. Even if two of them click then crowds can expect a big total on the scoreboard. Rayadu and Parthiv Patel will be also in the team, they are well used to pressure situations and can bat well.
MI will get the mentorship of the legend Sachin Tendulkar as chief mentor and Mahela Jayawardene as the head coach. No doubt, their tips and recommendation from the dugout could prove vital to the team’s performance.
Head to Head: MI and RPS won 1-1 each in their previous two encounters last year.
Winning Total: 180+
Prediction: Pune will win today.
Date and Venue: 06th April 2017 at MCA Stadium, Pune from 8PM onwards.
Live Telecast: Sony ESPN and Set Max
Last 5 Match Results
MI: L W L L W
RPS: W W L L L
Probable XI (Both Teams)
Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Parthiv Patel (Wicket Keeper), Lendl Simmons, Jos Buttler, Krunal Pandya, Harbhajan Singh, Ambati Rayudu, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Tim Southee and Jasprit Bumrah.
Rising Pune Supergiant: Steven Smith (Captain), MS Dhoni (Wicket Keeper), Ajinkya Rahane, Jaydev Unadkat, Ashoke Dinda, Faf du Plessis, Manoj Tiwary, Ben Stokes, Rajat Bhatia, Adam Zampa and Imran Tahir.
Tags: #IPL, Indian Premier League, IPL 10, IPL 2017, Maharashtra Derby, MI, Mumbai Indians, Rising Pune Supergiant, RPS
