After a rain-hit first game between the two sides, Mumbai Indians will face the Rajasthan Royals in the 45th match of the DLF Indian Premier League, in a match that could virtually seal either team’s fate vis-á-vis a spot in the semi-final.
A win here will be extremely useful for both team’s chances, while a loss will most definitely ensure that the team will then need to win both their remaining matches and hope for the other results to go their way as well. Mumbai (7/1 at Skybet to win tournament) have won their previous couple of games and should go into the match with the momentum going their way, while the Royals (10/1 at Coral to defend their title) have not only lost their last couple of games convincingly, but also their skipper Shane Warne, who may sit out due to injury
Wednesday’s night game between the Delhi Daredevils and the Deccan Chargers saw plenty of runs scored in both the innings, and Thursday may not be any different. The worry here is that this will be the third consecutive match, and in all probabilities, the second on the same pitch, so there is every likelihood that the pitch will slow down and help the spinners. In the case, and with Warney sitting out, Mumbai (8/11 at Stan James to win match) should be favourites to beat the Royals (13/10 at Sportingbet to beat Mumbai)
Mumbai has its own line-up of spinners, with Harbhajan Singh (4/1 at Stan James to be most economic) and Chetanya Nanda, who may not be a very frugal bowler, but picks wickets at regular intervals. J.P. Duminy had picked up a couple of wickets in the last game, and he will be a supporting bowler for the aforementioned. The danger for the Royals is that Lasith Malinga (3/1 at Stan James to be most economic) hasn’t exploded in the previous two or three games and he could be rearing to go and knock some of the opposition toes off with his searing yorkers.
Zaheer Khan (5/1 at Stan James to be most economic) has been injured and hasn’t played for long, but if he does play then the opposite stand-in captain, Graeme Smith (3/1 at Stan James to top Royals score) may have something to worry about. Zaheer has had the better of Smith on numerous occasions, and it may not be any different this time as well, with Smith looking out of sorts.
Amongst the rest, Yusuf Pathan’s (5/1 at Boylesports to be top Rajasthan batsman) form seems to have tapered off, and one could see him go back to coming into back in the 14th-16th over mark. Ravindra Jadeja (7/1 at 888Sport to be top Royals batsman), on the other hand, seems to have matured, and remains a threat to take the game away from the Mumbai Indians.
The Mumbai batting will need a better start from whoever opens their inning. It has been Sachin Tendulkar (3/1 at Paddy Power to be top Mumbai batsman) so far with Sanath Jayasuriya (4/1 at Ladbrokes to be top Mumbai batsman), but the last game predictably saw a change at the top; Dwayne Bravo (5/1 at Ladbrokes to top the Mumbai scoring again) opening it with the Sri Lankan. J.P. Duminy (4/1 at Paddy Power to score most runs for Mumbai) looks good at the number four position and should continue batting there; but it does make betting on him a double-edged sword as he may not get to bat till the slog overs if the openers get going.
Tips:
Favourites: Mumbai Indians (8/11 at Stan James)
Top Mumbai batsman: Sanath Jayasuriya (4/1 at Ladbrokes)
Top Rajasthan Royals: Ravindra Jadeja (7/1 at 888Sport)
Most economical bowler: Lasith Malinga (3/1 at Stan James)
