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The two most decorated franchises in the history of the Indian Premier League, Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings, have had disastrous starts to their respective campaigns in the 2022 season. The two teams reeling at the bottom of the table will go head to head at DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai on April 21.
Record IPL champions Mumbai Indians have played six matches in the tournament so far and haven’t managed to win a single one. They occupy the 10th place in this expanded edition of the league as the only team without registering a single point. Their net run-rate reads –1.048, and only a miracle can take them through to the playoffs now, with eight out of eight wins needed.
MI suffered an 18-run loss in their last fixture against Lucknow Super Giants. Their bowling was all over the place yet again, barring Jasprit Bumrah as they conceded 199/4, with KL Rahul scoring a magnificent century for Lucknow. Chasing the target, MI openers failed yet again while Dewald Brevis continued to impress with his strokeplay, smashing 31 off 13. Suryakumar Yadav scored 37 off 27, while Kieron Pollard (25 off 14) and Jaydev Unadkat (14 off 6) kept the hopes up but eventually fell short.
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Defending champions Chennai Super Kings have played six matches and have been victorious once. They sit at ninth place with a net run-rate of -0.638. Their only win of the season came against Royal Challengers Bangalore. Much like their counterparts, the Super Kings will also need a miracle to qualify for the playoffs, with seven wins needed out of eight.
CSK are coming off a three-wicket defeat at the hands of Gujarat Titans in a closely contested battle. Batting first, the men in yellow posted 169/5 on the back of Ruturaj Gaikwad’s 73 off 48 and a 31-ball 46 by Ambati Rayudu. CSK had reduced the Hardik Pandya-less side to 48/4 in eight overs. However, they did not have answers to David Miller (94* off 51) and Rashid Khan (40 off 21) onslaught as they lost the game on the penultimate ball.
The sides share the biggest rivalry in the league, and despite not being in their usual form, expect them to produce an intense contest.
Key players
With 635 runs at an average of 45 and strike rate of 136, CSK’s Ruturaj Gaikwad was the highest run-getter in the 2021 season. The batter had an awful start to this season but returned to form in the last game, smashing a 48-ball 73. He undoubtedly remains a key player for the Super Kings.
Dwayne Bravo is one of the trailblazers in T20 cricket and one of the most difficult bowlers to deal with in death overs. He’s the leading wicket-taker in the history of the IPL with 177 wickets from 154 games. Bravo has picked 10 wickets in the IPL 2022 at an economy of 8.35. He’s coming off a terrific spell of 3 for 23 in four overs.
Once considered the best Indian batter in the T20 format, Suryakumar Yadav is currently making his form count. He has scored 200 runs this season from just four innings at an average of 67 and strike rate of 154. Since 2018, SKY has scored 1933 runs in the league at an average of 34.5 and strike rate of 139.
Jasprit Bumrah is the best pacer in the world with a rare ability to be effective in all phases of the innings. He’s one of the leading wicket-takers in the league, with 134 wickets from 112 games at an economy of 7.43. Bumrah has only picked four scalps in six games this season but has been very economical in high-scoring games.
Prediction
H2H: Mumbai Indians have dominated the scoreline by winning 20 out of 34 matches. They also lead the last five games by 3-2.
CSK have a decent batting line-up with the likes of Robin Uthappa, Moeen Ali, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja and Shivam Dube. Ruturaj Gaikwad’s return to form at the top is great news for the team. The bowling unit, however, has so many holes. Maheesh Theekshana and Bravo have been very good. Expect them to bring in Dwaine Pretorius for Chris Jordan.
MI have concerns at the top order with both openers not getting substantial scores. Yadav, Dewald Brevis and Tilak Varma have been excellent, but the lower middle order is again a concern. The bowling department is in even worse shape, being highly dependent on Bumrah. Tymal Mills could be dropped after being expensive in the last few games.
Both the teams have plenty of issues, but the yellow army has been more consistent with their selection process. Overall, CSK look slightly more balanced and should have an edge in this clash on Thursday.
