Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Rohit Sharma may no longer be the captains of their respective IPL franchises, but that doesn’t take away one bit of the excitement the intense rivalry between a Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians match generates in the Indian Premier League (IPL). And come Sunday, the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai is set to witness the season’s first face-off between the five-time title-holders.
All eyes will be on the legendary MS Dhoni in what could be his final game at the iconic Wankhede Stadium, where many moons back, he hit the winning six for India to clinch the 2011 ODI World Cup trophy. This is MS’ first game as a non-skipper, in potentially his final IPL season.
This season presents a new challenge for both sides with a tectonic shift of leadership change with Hardik Pandya taking over the mantle from Rohit at MI and Ruturaj Gaikwad succeeding Dhoni at CSK. With both the sides having their former captains in their roster this season, it could be beneficial for both Hardik and Ruturaj to get used to the pressure of a MI vs CSK game.
Heading into the contest, CSK would also hope their recent record against MI — four wins in last five matches including their seven-wicket win here last season — holds them in good stead. However, having said that, the Yellow Brigade has experienced turbulence in their away fixtures this season, and lost two defeats on the road so far.
The Mumbai Indians bounced back strongly from a three-game losing streak to record back-to-back victories against Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru, and will be hoping to retain their home dominance on Sunday.
The CSK side is back in action after registering a tidy win over Kolkata Knight Riders back home, and the onus will once again be on their bowling unit to restrict the rampaging MI batters, who have gone brutal scoring in excess of 230 against DC and chasing down nearly 200 against RCB with more than four overs to spare.
For MI, the opening combo of Rohit and Ishan Kishan have been hugely successful in providing sound starts while the return of Suryakumar Yadav, who struck a 17-ball fifty against RCB has added more ammunition in the batting department. Skipper Hardik Pandya, Tim David and Romario Shepherd have already shown their brute force in their last few outings, making them a fearsome batting unit.
In the bowling unit, Purple Cap holder Jasprit Bumrah is back from claiming a five-wicket haul against RCB, and along with Gerald Coetzee, the new ball pair looks a deadly unit. Pandya, Shams Mulani and the rest of the bowlers have played the supporting act to perfection.
For CSK, skipper Gaikwad has been the silent enforcer, while the side relies on the exuberance of Rachin Ravindra at the top, and the solidity from Daryl Mitchell in the middle and explosiveness of Shivam Dube (176 runs), Ravindra Jadeja and Dhoni in the death overs.
On the bowling front, Mustafizur Rahman will be keen on reclaiming the Purple Cap, while Shardul Thakur and Tushar Deshpande will be expected to take advantage of their home conditions. Jadeja has manned the spin unit quite impressibly, and will look forward to another tidy outing against the MI big-hitters.