IPL10 2017 Preview : Mumbai Indians v/s Kings XI Punjab , 11 May Match 51 2000 IST

Kings XI Punjab will play the second of their must-win matches when they clash against the Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai today in 51th match of IPL10 2017.MI are placed comfortably at the top of the IPL standings and are as of yet the only team assured of a spot in the playoff round. The equation for KXIP is actually simple on the other hand – they have 12 points from 12 matches, and need four more points to give themselves the opportunity to compete for a playoff spot. 16 points may not assure a playoff spot, but that’s the least they need to stay in contention; if KXIP can win the remaining two matches and get to 16 points, they will then need other results to fall in their favour. A loss at this point will end their campaign though.

MI, who lost their last match to Sunrisers Hyderabad, will look to re-establish momentum as they head into the crucial business end of the tournament. Having played excellently for most part of the season, MI will want to ensure a second chance to make the finals; for that, they will need to finish in the top two.

MI skipper Rohit Sharma needs 46 more runs to complete 3000 IPL runs for MI – the MI captain is coming into this match at the back of his highest score this season. Every significant score by the MI captain has been followed by a poor score in the next inning and he will look to break the cycle and deliver again today on the pitch. Lendl Simmons has been a consistent performer for MI, and he will be expected to get the team off to a flier at the top.

In the bowling department, MI will look to Mitchell McClenagahan to strike early, and hope Harbhajan Singh can restrict the Punjab batsmen as the pitch gets slower.

As far as KXIP go, the three international players – Martin Guptill, Shaun Marsh and Glenn Maxwell – need to play the lead role on the batting front, something that has not happened consistently in the course of this tournament. Axar Patel is having a very great season all-round; the youngster is riding high on confidence and is contribution with bat, ball and on the field. Among the bowlers, Sandeep Sharma has generally set the tone for KXIP with early strikes and he will be expected to do well in the match today.

When

11 May 2017, 2000 Hrs IST

Where

Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

Head to Head

Overall: Matches played – 19, Mumbai Indians won – 10, Kings XI Punjab Won – 9

Squads:

Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (capt), Lendl Simmons, Mitchell Johnson, Mitchell McClenghan, Nitish Rana, Parthiv Patel, Saurabh Tiwary, Shreyas Gopal, Tim Southee, Lasith Malinga, Krunal Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Ambati Rayudu, Asela Gunaratne, Harbhajan Singh, Hardik Pandya, Jagdish Suchith, Jasprit Bumrah, Jos Buttler, Karn Sharma, Vinay Kumar.

Kings XI Punjab: Glenn Maxwell (capt), David Miller, Manan Vohra, Hashim Amla, Shaun Marsh, Darren Sammy, Wriddhiman Saha, Nikhil Naik, Ishant Sharma, Armaan Jaffer, Martin Guptill, Eoin Morgan, Rinku Singh, Sandeep Sharma, Anureet Singh, Mohit Sharma, KC Cariappa, Pradeep Sahu, Swapnil Singh, T Natarajan, Matt Henry, Varun Aaron, Axar Patel, Marcus Stoinis, Gurkeerat Mann, Rahul Tewatia.