Struggling Former Champions MI, CSK Seek Consistency

Mumbai: Battling former champions Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings will be eyeing consistency as they await the return of their former captains Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni, who they will face in the Indian Premier League on Thursday.

Rohit (hamstring) and Dhoni (calf strain) are on their way back, but it remains to be seen whether either of them will take the field at the Wankhede Stadium, a historically iconic IPL clash.

While Rohit missed training during the optional session on Tuesday, Dhoni, who is yet to feature in this IPL, went through his drills, hinting at a possible return as the Impact Reserve.

However, the subplot goes beyond the two mighty Indians, with both teams sharing 10 IPL titles between them still struggling with multiple issues on various fronts.

CSK started the tournament, as most teams do, searching for form and the right combination, and just when they looked like they had come to terms, they were dealt a major blow when local talent Ayush Mhatre, who scored 201 runs, suffered a hamstring injury.

CSK find themselves on the drawing board once again, trying to fill the gap in their batting reserves, with Gujarat wicketkeeper-batsman Urvil Patel among the options.

CSK will want to see their batsmen fire collectively after the disappointing defeat to Sunrisers Hyderabad; It was a match they should have finished comfortably as they chased 130 off 90 balls with eight wickets in hand, but the middle order’s lack of initiative allowed SRH to turn the tide in their favour.

Although Sarfaraz has been consistent with 147 runs, he is yet to convert starts into a big-hitting innings despite having a key batting role, especially as skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad endured a disappointing season with just 82 runs.

Many will be similarly riding on Sanju Samson (192 runs), given that the Indian wicketkeeper-batsman is back to his T20 World Cup semi-final heroics.

CSK will also aim to end their two-match losing streak by relying on their recent strong record against MI by winning four of the last five matches.

While both teams have four points, only net run rate separates seventh-placed MI (0.067) from eighth-placed CSK (-0.780); In-form sides are already ahead by eight points or more.

Tilak Varma’s brilliance in Ahmedabad helped Mumbai Indians end their four-match losing streak, but the five-time champions remained in damage control mode. For MI, Tilak’s century could well prove the spark they need to reignite their campaign, given their proven ability to handle such situations in the IPL.

However, the biggest concerns remain the form of India T20I skipper Suryakumar Yadav and MI skipper Hardik Pandya; Suryakumar has managed only a half-century so far and Pandya is yet to deliver late fireworks or steady the deliveries when required.

In both cases, Naman Dhir was given the task of stepping up and the Punjabi did it with some margin.

Jasprit Bumrah’s return between the wickets, along with Ashwani Kumar’s four-wicket haul, was a huge boost in the impressive 99-run win for MI and eased concerns in the camp as neither Trent Boult, Deepak Chahar nor Hardik Pandya could provide consistent early breakthroughs.

English all-rounder for MI Will Jacks has arrived in India, joined the camp ahead of Thursday’s match and has been training at the Wankhede Stadium with the expectation that he will further strengthen the squad.

Teams (from):

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

Chennai Super Kings: Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), MS Dhoni (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Kartik Sharma (wk), Dewald Brevis, Sarfaraz Khan, Urvil Patel (wk), Aman Khan, Shivam Dube, Zak Foulkes, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Anshul Kamboj, Jamie Overton, Matthew Short, Prashant Veer, Rahul Chahar, Shreyas Gopal, Gurjapneet Singh, Matt Henry, Akeal Hosein, Spencer Johnson, Mukesh Choudhary, Noor Ahmad.

The match will start at 19.30 IST.