Sunrisers Hyderabad aim to deepen Mumbai Indians’ IPL woes

Mumbai Indians face a crucial IPL clash against Sunrisers Hyderabad as they struggle with poor form and inconsistent performances. SRH, boosted by strong batting from Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Heinrich Klaasen, aim to strengthen their playoff position

Mumbai: Mumbai Indians will hope for a massive turnaround in fortunes against an in-form Sunrisers Hyderabad, with the five-time champions’ campaign at stake in a crucial Indian Premier League clash here on Wednesday.

With five defeats in the first seven matches, their most recent being their heaviest in history by margin of runs (103 vs Chennai Super Kings), Mumbai Indians (ranked ninth, 4 points, NRR -0.736) have their backs firmly against the wall in a season marred by no-shows from their top players.

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Comprising as many as four players from India’s T20 World Cup-winning squad, MI’s woes have been compounded by ordinary returns from skipper Hardik Pandya (3 wickets and 97 runs) and Suryakumar Yadav (157).

Tilak Varma’s maiden IPL hundred against Gujarat Titans did help MI snap a four-match losing streak, but their massive loss to Chennai Super Kings once again threw their faltering campaign into a tailspin.

MI have also had Jasprit Bumrah (2 wickets) struggling for impact. Usually preserved for breakthroughs in the middle overs and for restricting opposition at the death, Bumrah has uncharacteristically opened the attack for MI in the last two games as the other new-ball bowlers have failed to deliver.

Neither Trent Boult (1) nor Deepak Chahar (1) have been penetrative, and overall, MI have often allowed opposition to seize control in the powerplay due to a lack of wickets and ordinary bowling.

Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma’s absence has created a void which Danish Malewar (2, 0) has not been able to fill in the last two games, and it remains to be seen if the former skipper has regained fitness after a hamstring issue.

With an injured Mitchell Santner replaced by Keshav Maharaj, it also remains to be seen if Will Jacks finds a place in the playing XI. He had thrived in similar conditions in the T20 World Cup.

SRH, meanwhile, will feel they are primed to end a three-match losing streak against MI when they take the field in the batting-friendly conditions of the Wankhede Stadium here.

Unfazed by an onslaught from 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, SRH came out all guns blazing to record a second victory of the season over Rajasthan Royals.

Abhishek Sharma will be keen to make the most of his form after a quiet T20 World Cup. With 380 runs at a strike rate of 212.29 and an average of 54.28, including one century and three fifties, the India T20I opener is back to his best.

Ishan Kishan (312) and Heinrich Klaasen (349) have again fired with the bat, providing further strength to the 2016 winners, but more will be expected from Travis Head (186), who has had a quiet IPL so far.

The return of Pat Cummins, despite a modest spell in a high-scoring game, would have pleased the SRH side, which sits comfortably in third place and is looking good for another appearance in the IPL playoffs.

Teams (from):

Mumbai Indians: Hardik Pandya (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Ryan Rickelton (wk), Robin Minz (wk), Danish Malewar, Sherfane Rutherford, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Raj Bawa, Corbin Bosch, Will Jacks, Mayank Rawat, Naman Dhir, Shardul Thakur, Ashwani Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult, Deepak Chahar, Krish Bhagat, AM Ghazanfar, Keshav Maharaj, Mayank Markande, Mohd Izhar, Raghu Sharma.

Sunrisers Hyderabad: Pat Cummins (c), Salil Arora (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Travis Head, Ravichandran Ashwin, Aniket Verma, Abhishek Sharma, Harsh Dubey, Krains Fuletra, Liam Livingstone, Kamindu Mendis, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshal Patel, Shivam Mavi, Shivang Kumar, Amit Kumar, Gerald Coetzee, Praful Hinge, Sakib Hussain, Dilshan Madushanka, Eshan Malinga, Onkar Tarnale, Jaydev Unadkat, Zeeshan Ansari.

Match starts at 7:30 pm IST.