Depleted Mumbai face Chennai test

Match facts

Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Start time: 2000 (local) 1430 (GMT)

The Big Picture

The first IPL match in Chennai assumes huge proportions for the visiting Mumbai Indians, the most expensive franchise - they are yet to notch up a win, are again likely to be without their captain and icon Sachin Tendulkar and face a home side that has recorded the tournament's highest score so far. As if that wasn't pressure enough, Mumbai's captain for the day, Harbhajan Singh, will face off against old foe Matthew Hayden, who called him a "little obnoxious weed" two months ago. Chennai's pressures are minor in comparison but they will want to replicate their performance against Kings XI Punjab in front of arguably the most knowledgeable fans in India - and their icon, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, will be looking to get some runs under his belt.

Watch out for ...

... a high-scoring spectacle, as the pitch in Chennai is known to favour batting, and both teams possess the requisite strike force for that to happen. Though they will be without Tendulkar, Mumbai have Sanath Jayasuriya and Luke Ronchi to give the innings a lift-off. Robin Uthappa may not have pleased the purists during his 48 at home, but his innovative strokeplay can hurt opponents. With this form of the game placing a premium on all-round abilities, Shaun Pollock may be the difference between the sides: in Mumbai's first game, he scored 28 off 12 balls, before conceding only 17 in his four overs.

Chennai will count on their adopted son, Dhoni, to deliver the goods, and after a quiet outing in Mohali, he will need to get things rolling. At the top, Hayden, and especially Michael Hussey, are an exacting proposition. Hussey is riding a wave of confidence after a breathtaking assault on his IPL debut: an unbeaten 116 off 54 balls decorated with eight fours and nine sixes.

Team news

Mumbai's main bugbear will be Tendulkar's absence, but now they have another addition to sick bay - Dominic Thornely, who required 15 stitches after being struck on his face by a Zaheer Khan bouncer. This means that Dwayne Bravo will get a game, and his electric presence in the field can serve to inspire the team. Meanwhile, Pinal Shah is likely to sit out and his place may go to Saurabh Tiwary, the promising batsman from Jharkhand.

Mumbai: (probable) 1 Sanath Jayasuriya, 2 Luke Ronchi (wk), 3 Robin Uthappa, 4 Dwayne Bravo, 5 Saurabh Tiwary, 6 Abhishek Nayar, 7 Shaun Pollock, 8 Harbhajan Singh (capt), 9 Musavir Khote, 10 Ashish Nehra, 11 Dhaval Kulkarni

Chennai may not want to tinker with the combination that beat Kings XI Punjab on Saturday. But a question mark hangs over Joginder, who was largely ineffectual with the ball in Mohali, but it's hard to see who among the younger domestic players can replace him. Meanwhile, Chennai will have to wait till their next match against Bangalore Royal Challengers to get the services of their South African recruits - Albie Morkel, who will represent his domestic side, the Titans, in the Standard Bank Pro20 final on April 25; and Makhaya Ntini, who will fly into Chennai on April 26.

Chennai: (probable) 1Matthew Hayden, 2 Parthiv Patel, 3 Michael Hussey, 4 Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt), 5 Suresh Raina, 6 Jacob Oram, 7 S Badrinath, 8 Joginder Sharma, 9 P Amarnath, 10 Manpreet Gony, 11 Muttiah Muralitharan

Stats and trivia

Ronchi hammered the fastest hundred in Australian domestic one-day history last year, one of the reasons he landed a three-year contract with Mumbai.

Chennai's top order is powered by the two run-machines - Hayden and Hussey - both of whom average over 45 in Twenty20s, finding a place in the top ten averages for batsmen who have played at least ten innings.

Quotes

"He [Dhoni] is a very confident man. He led well in Mohali and has an aura about him."
Matthew Hayden is all praise for his captain

"It will be a case of marginal errors when we play Chennai. They have a very good top half. It is going to be a high-scoring game."
Shaun Pollock expects a tight encounter