Defending champions Chennai Super Kings will take on Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League on Sunday, with legend Mahendra Singh Dhoni set to steal the spotlight in his final match at the iconic Wankhede Stadium Focus. Dhoni returns to the hallowed turf of the Wankhede for the first time as a non-CSK captain in what could be his last season in the IPL. This will also be his first appearance as a player for any team since November 2005. (IPL 2024 Points Table)
Even at the age of 42, Dhoni’s glove work remains impeccable and his assessment of the game is as good as ever. But CSK will hope that his tactical acumen will also help them improve their dismal record on the road this season, where they have already suffered two defeats.
CSK will also hope that their recent record against MI – four wins in the last five games, including seven here last season – will keep them in good form.
The two most successful teams in the IPL with 5 titles each, both sides witnessed a structural shift in leadership with Hardik Pandya taking over from MI’s Rohit Sharma. Rohit Sharma, Ruturaj Gaikwad took over from Dhoni at CSK but there was no sign of serious competition between them to expect any such shift.
If anything, CSK’s bowlers could get hammered by the furious MI batsmen, who went all out on a flat pitch here to score over 230 runs against Delhi Capitals, in Chasing nearly 200 runs in over 4 overs against Royal Challengers Bangalore. Idle.
Pandya’s MI have found their footing after a nervous start. Their batsmen have been in fine form in the last two games and Suryakumar Yadav’s 17-ball 50 against RCB was a revelation for the CSK bowlers In an ominous sign, their mastery of the slow, spinning pitch they displayed at Chepauk remains untested on a flat, batting-friendly surface.
Therefore, the opening stand of Ishan Kishan (161) and Rohit is crucial to the entire plan, but CSK’s own batting also has a lot to offer.
Skipper Gaikwad may not be a predator with the bat, but he can be a silent enforcer in a CSK line-up that has the energy of Rachin Ravindra at the top, Daryl in the middle Daryl Mitchell’s solidity and Shivam Dube’s explosiveness (176), Ravindra Jadeja and Dhoni in the death overs .
CSK will also be aware that dismissing the deft Jasprit Bumrah (10 wickets) and chasing down the rest of MI’s bowling will be key as the others struggled with their own lines and lengths on a calm surface with stunning The speed lost points.
Despite Bumrah taking 5 wickets, MI leaked runs at a high rate, taking RCB closer to the 200-run mark a few nights ago.
CSK will be heavily dependent on Shardul Thakur and Tushar Deshpande, both of whom are set to return to their home turf, but given their recent Performance, Mustafizur Rahman (9 wickets) and the crafty Jadeja will be the ones to watch out for.
The team said “we want to get as many runs as possible”, but on the face of it, scoring around 220-230 when batting first might be the best way to ensure an upper hand at this venue.
Team (from): Mumbai Indians: Hardik Pandya (centre), Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Dewald Brevis, Jasprit Bumrah, Piyush Chawla, Gerald Coetzee, Tim David, Shreyas Gopal, Ishan Kishan (wk), Anshul Kamboj, Kumar Kartikeya, Akash Madhwal, Kwena Maphaka, Mohammad Nabi, Shams Mulani, Naman Dhir, Shivalik Sharma, Romario Shepherd, Arjun Tendulkar, Nuwan Suchhara, Tilak Varma, Vishnu Vinod, Nehal Wadhera, Luke Wood.
Chennai Super Kings: MS Dhoni (wk), Aravelly Avanish (wk), Devon Conway, Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Ajinkya Rahane, Shaik Rasheed, Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube, RS Hangargekar, Ravindra Jadeja, Ajay Jadav Mandal, Daryl Mitchell , Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Nishant Sindhu, Deepak Chahar, Tushar Deshpande, Mukesh Choudhary, Mustafizur Rahman, Matheesha Pathirana, Simarjeet Singh, Prashant Solanki, Shardul Thakur, Maheesh Theekshana, Sameer Rizvi.
The match starts at 7:30 pm (IST).
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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