Mumbai 2, Super Kings 0, who'll secure direct entry to final?
Mumbai have beaten Super Kings twice in IPL 2019 and in all they have defeated the hosts four times in six IPL matches at Chepauk
The Preview by Saurabh Somani
06-May-2019
Big picture
The two best teams in the IPL 2019 league phase have finished on the top of the table, despite a season of fluctuating fortunes where who would finish top, or bottom, wasn't decided till the last day.
Against any team other than Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings would have been the firm favourites for the first qualifier given that the match will take place in Chepauk. But Mumbai are the only team who have dominated Super Kings at their home ground, which makes this contest a lot more even. Mumbai won both league games against Super Kings this year, including a 46-run win at Chepauk, and the overall head to head at the venue in the IPL stands 4-2 in favour of Mumbai.
Super Kings' army of spinners have held sway over other batting line-ups, but Mumbai's batting depth, power and class have been enough to negate that threat, more often than not. Mumbai's spin stocks are comparatively weaker, but their pacers, led by the redoubtable Jasprit Bumrah, more than make up for it.
Super Kings' weakest suit this season has been their batting, which has been camouflaged to a large extent thanks to MS Dhoni's form and nous. Mumbai's own batting hasn't consistently fired as a unit, but Hardik Pandya has been unstoppable in the middle, and one or the other of the top order has generally got runs. Rohit Sharma has begun to find his groove in the second half of the season too, and he's the kind of batsman that can transcend the pitch and conditions, and get runs even if Super Kings offer up a turner.
In the news
- Kedar Jadhav's shoulder injury has put Super Kings in a quandary. Jadhav didn't have the best time with the bat in the league phase, but they'll be forced to rejig their combination ahead of the playoffs - and Super Kings are famously averse to changing their XIs, even to the extent of carrying under-performing players.
Previous meeting
Mumbai outclassed Super Kings in Chepauk with Rohit Sharma's classy innings followed by a strangulation in the middle overs. Rohit made 67, his first half-century of IPL 2019, in that game, taking Mumbai to 155 for 4. It was more than a competitive score on a pitch aiding spinners, and Super Kings capsized to 109 all out in 17.4 overs.
Likely XIs
Mumbai Indians: 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Rohit Sharma (capt), 3 Suryakumar Yadav, 4 Ishan Kishan, 5 Hardik Pandya, 6 Kieron Pollard, 7 Krunal Pandya, 8 Anukul Roy, 9 Rahul Chahar, 10 Lasith Malinga, 11 Jasprit Bumrah
Chennai Super Kings: 1 Shane Watson, 2 Faf du Plessis, 3 Suresh Raina, 4 Ambati Rayudu, 5 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 6 Dhruv Shorey, 7 Dwayne Bravo, 8 Ravindra Jadeja, 9 Deepak Chahar, 10 Harbhajan Singh, 11 Imran Tahir
Strategy punt
- Mumbai need to consider pushing Hardik Pandya higher up the order. Hardik's been in the form of his life this IPL, and he has shown that he is not just a hitter who can hit a few balls at the death. His strike rate against spin this season is a staggering 205, the highest in the competition. His strike rate in the middle overs (7 to 15) is 181, again the highest in the competition. And it's not like he's been a 'hit out or get out' batsman either - he hardly gets out in the middle overs in fact. Of the 58 balls Hardik has faced in the middle overs this IPL, he has been dismissed just once, and hit 105 runs. His form and numbers make a compelling case to send him in fairly early, because Hardik has shown staying power as well as destructive ability - T20 gold.
Stats that matter
- Karn Sharma has been in the IPL winning team for the past three seasons now, but he's more than just a lucky charm. In five playoff matches, Karn has taken seven wickets at an average of 14.6 and an economy rate of 6.6.
Saurabh Somani is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo