5-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians are still looking for their first win this season, and have lost 5 matches on the trot. With a batting lineup full of firepower, all the batters have to fire to get Mumbai their first win. Tim David, who was bought for 8.25 crores by MI, is still benched and the dynamic trio of SKY, Tilak Varma and Dewal Brevis needs to fire along with Ishan Kishan and captain Rohit Sharma.
MI bowling has fallen short of attack and has mainly been the cause of the team’s consecutive defeats this season. Riley Meredith may make his way to playing XI in place of Unadkat. Bumrah, Thampi & Mills will be the strike bowlers, while Murugan Ashwin has to perform more effectively to create pressure on the opposition.
Lucknow Super Giants had a top-order collapse courtesy of Rajasthan’s Trent Boult in their last match. However, with KL Rahul & Quinton de Kock at the top, in form, Deepak Hooda & Ayush Badoni in the middle, and Pandya, Stoinis, and Holder to finish innings, and the addition of Marcus Stonis has further strengthened the squad. The new franchise would look to win this match and enter the top 2 on the points table.
Avesh Khan & Ravi Bishnoi lead the bowling attack for LSG, while Holder has also taken wickets in the middle overs. K Gowtham has also impressed in the 2 matches he has played while Dushmantha Chameera and Krunal Pandya can also provide wickets at crucial points.
MATCH DETAILS
Match: Mumbai Indians vs Lucknow Super Giants, Match 26, IPL 2022
Venue: Brabourne Stadium
Date & Time: 16th April, 3:30 PM
PITCH REPORT
The last two games at the Brabourne Stadium have clearly shown that it is a belter of a pitch to bat on and any score could be chased on if wickets are kept in hand. With an afternoon game in place, there is no dew factor as well and it will be an equal contest between both bat and ball. The captain that wins the toss is likely to stick with the trend of bowling first which hasn’t failed often in this edition.
PROBABLE PLAYING XI FOR MI VS LSG
MUMBAI INDIANS
Rohit Sharma (c), Ishan Kishan (wk), Dewald Brevis, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Kieron Pollard, Fabien Allen, Jaydev Unadkat, Murugan Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Basil Thampi
LUCKNOW SUPERGIANTS
KL Rahul (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Marcus Stoinis, Deepak Hooda, Ayush Badoni, Krunal Pandya, Jason Holder, Krishnappa Gowtham, Dushmantha Chameera, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan
PROBABLE TOP PERFORMERS
PROBABLE BEST BATTER OF THE MATCH: ISHAN KISHAN
Ishan Kishan had a terrific start to the IPL 2022 campaign, scoring two half-centuries in the first two games, but since then he has gone into a shell with three consecutive failures. The most expensive player of the IPL 2022 auction, hasn’t stuck to his natural game of going after the bowling which has worked out well for him in the past. The left-hander needs to up his game if Mumbai has to do a dramatic comeback this year.
PROBABLE BEST BOWLER OF THE MATCH: JASPRIT BUMRAH
Jasprit Bumrah has been bowling some outstanding deliveries, and his delivery to get rid of Liam Livingstone was a peach as well. The right-arm pacer has been hitting the tough lengths for the batters. However, with the lack of options for Rohit, Bumrah has not been given the new ball as well. He picked up 1 for 28 in the previous game and will be looking to add more to his tally in the upcoming fixture.
Today’s match prediction: Mumbai Indians to win the match.