IPL 2019: It's a battle between Mumbaikars as MI play RR at Wankhede

Fit-again Rohit Sharma at Wankhede Stadium yesterday. Pics/Suresh Karkera

On paper it's a match between Mumbai Indians and Rajasthan Royals. It's also a clash between Mumbaikars. The conditions at the Wankhede Stadium for today's Indian Premier League clash may not be alien to certain players in the Rajasthan Royals camp. Their support staff too have better knowledge of the conditions in Mumbai.

While RR is led by Mumbai star Ajinkya Rahane, he also has two other Mumbai players at his disposal - Dhawal Kulkarni and Shashank Singh. In the support staff, RR boasts of Mumbai stalwarts Amol Muzumdar (batting coach), Sairaj Bahutule (bowling coach) and head of cricket Zubin Bharucha, the former Mumbai Ranji Trophy batsman. Their knowledge of the conditions at Wankhede is unmatched.

MI's Kieron Pollard with his son Kaiden at the Wankhede nets yesterday

On match eve, Bharucha, and Bahutule along with head coach Paddy Upton were seen talking to the Wankhede groundsmen before taking a hard look at the pitch. What worked in RR's favour during their clash against Mumbai Indians in the last edition when Rahane won by seven wickets, was their sound knowledge of the Wankhede pitch. MI had also lost their away clash in Jaipur by three wickets. This time around, with Mumbai Indians in resurgent form, the task of registering a win at Wankhede could be challenging for RR, who have just one win in six matches.

Rohit boost for MI
To make matters worse for RR, Mumbai Indians have been boosted with the return of skipper Rohit Sharma, who missed the last match against Kings XI Punjab due to a leg muscle spasm. "He is definitely available for selection and is very confident, so that's a very positive sign for us," said Zaheer Khan, MI's director of cricket operations. One of the attractions of today's contest is the match-up between wrist spinners. Shreyas Gopal is a key spinner for RR after claiming eight wickets in six innings while MI will bank on their leggies Rahul Chahar and Mayank Markande.

Economical Chahar
Chahar has claimed two wickets in three matches, but importantly, he has managed to keep his economy rate down to under six. Markande has been a bit expensive in this IPL, going for 8.75 runs per over in two matches.

"Shreyas for sure has had success in the IPL, getting the best of batsmen out. But I am pretty confident of Rahul Chahar as well. He is bowling superbly. He had a great domestic season and most importantly, the ability to take wickets in the middle overs, especially after the Powerplay, is very crucial," Zaheer said.

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