Kings XI seek revival against settled Pune
Match facts
Sunday, April 17, 2016
Start time: 1600 local (1030 GMT)
Big Picture
"Played two, lost two" only scratches at the surface of Kings XI Punjab's corpus of worries as they head into their third match of the season. The manner of their defeat against Delhi Daredevils at the Feroz Shah Kotla was particularly disconcerting. The middle order looked shaky and David Miller and Glenn Maxwell - on whom the team strongly depends - appeared badly out of form. Chaotic running between the wickets and missed chances in the field rounded off an all-round shambolic performance. Hence, even as they return to Mohali, Kings XI may be forgiven for feeling like they have strayed up a beanstalk and need to steal a win from Rising Pune Supergiants.
Supergiants, for their part, will seek momentum with their settled side. Notwithstanding their defeat at the hands of Gujarat Lions, they have most bases covered. The top order is firing, the spinners are playing their part, and captain MS Dhoni played a fine cameo when he got the chance, against Lions. Though Rajat Bhatia and Mitchell Marsh had a poor match against the Lions, they bowled economical spells in the tournament opener against Mumbai Indians. RP Singh and Ishant Sharma may be more of a concern, though, particularly in relation to their struggles when bowling in the end overs.
Ultimately, Supergiants seem to have more options and more ways to win a match than Kings XI. The hosts will need a disciplined and gutsy effort with contributions from their key players to register their first win of IPL 2016.
In the spotlight
Much attention has been paid to Kings XI's underperforming big-ticket overseas players, but in the meanwhile, Manan Vohra has scored good-looking, quickfire thirties in both their matches this season. After a quiet 2015, the 22-year-old looks in fine form at the moment and, with many of his team-mates struggling, might be the man to produce a standout performance.
In the spotlight for Supergiants will be Ashwin. Both of them. M Ashwin, the young legspinner, has done a good job in the two matches so far and clearly has his captain's backing. What was particularly noticeable in the opening match was how R Ashwin, senior offspinner and fellow Tamil Nadu player, was guiding the youngster through his spell, even as he himself got just the one over. In the last match, the two Ashwins bowled out their quotas and were their team's best bowlers. After Kings XI's capitulation to Amit Mishra on Friday, the Ashwins might have their work cut out.
Team news
Despite the batting collapse of the last match, Kings XI might well be tempted to give the top seven another chance. On the bowling front, though, Mitchell Johnson has looked out of sorts, which could leave the door open for Kyle Abbott or Marcus Stoinis.
Kings XI Punjab (probable) 1 M Vijay, 2 Manan Vohra, 3 Shaun Marsh, 4 David Miller (capt), 5 Glenn Maxwell, 6 Axar Patel, 7 Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 8 Mitchell Johnson/Kyle Abbott/Marcus Stoinis, 9 Mohit Sharma, 10 Pardeep Sahu, 11 Sandeep Sharma
Dhoni is known for his aversion to tinkering with his team, but as he strives to hit upon his best XI, he may make an exception. Albie Morkel might be considered in place of Mitchell Marsh, while RP Singh could well make way for Ishwar Pandey or Jaskaran Singh.
Rising Pune Supergiants (probable) 1 Ajinkya Rahane, 2 Faf du Plessis, 3 Kevin Pietersen, 4 Steven Smith, 5 MS Dhoni (capt, wk), 6 Mitchell Marsh/Albie Morkel, 7 Rajat Bhatia, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Ishant Sharma, 10 M Ashwin, 11 RP Singh/Ishwar Pandey/Jaskaran Singh
Pitch and conditions
The Mohali pitch is generally good for batting, though Lions' Dwayne Bravo and Ravindra Jadeja showed that quality bowling can reap rewards too. Big boundaries, especially square of the wicket, will test the teams' running between the wickets and fielding. That test will be all the greater in an afternoon match, with a forecast high of 38 degrees.
Stats and trivia
- Kings XI have a win-loss record of 1-4 in their last five matches in Mohali. Prior to that, they had won six consecutive matches at the venue
- Kevin Pietersen has two fifty-plus IPL scores in Mohali, in as many matches
Sirish Raghavan is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo