MI vs CSK, IPL 2023: Rohit & Co. aim to seek out right combination at Wankhede

Rohit Sharma, MS Dhoni (Pic: AFP)

Rohit Sharma will look to regain his lost momentum both as a batsman and skipper, when Mumbai Indians square off against an astute Mahendra Singh Dhoni's Chennai Super Kings in what could be safely billed as a Saturday night IPL blockbuster.

Rested well for a week after their their crushing loss against RCB in season-opener, Mumbai Indians will have to deliver under additional pressure in front of their passionate home fans here at the Wankhede Stadium. More so, given how ruthlessly Royal Challengers Bangalore blew their Playing XI in a one-sided game last Sunday.

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However, Mumbai will look to benefit most from the inexperience of Rajvardhan Hangargekar and Tushar Deshpande who could find the batting-friendly Wankhede track very challenging. How well spinners Moeen Ali and Mitchell Santner bowl will also decide CSK's fate against the five-time champions. There will be, however, be a case for Sisanda Magala, who is known to nail wide yorkers for South Africa might replace Santner in the playing XI. Skipper Sharma will be the cynosure of all eyes, who hasn't been able to set the IPL stage ablaze for several seasons.

How well Jofra Archer performs in a small ground with short side boundaries will hold key for MI as the likes of Arshad Khan, Cameron Green could be lambs for slaughter for in-form Ruturaj Gaikwad or Devon Conway. Mumbai Indians have also looked to plug in the holes by roping in Australian quick Riley Meredith in place of the injured Jhye Richardson, and Sandeep Warrier replacing Jasprit Bumrah gives them another option. It will also be interesting to see how batting star Suryakumar Yadav front up against an inexperienced attack.

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In Chennai line-up, Gaikwad's imperious form with the bat and his pairing with the indomitable Convway is best attack weapon for the 'Yellow Brigade'. With two fifties in as many games, Gaikwad has had the best possible start this season and his side would only wish that the right-hander is able to carry the momentum from one game to the next.

Conway missed out on a half-century against Lucknow Super Giants but he put on a century stand with Gaikwad to announce his return to form. Shivam Dube and Moeen Ali are vital cogs for CSK in the middle-order, for whom the venerable Ambati Rayudu and Dhoni have also fired at important junctions, making them look like a better batting line-up in comparison to MI. One could also watch out for Deepak Chahar who will hope to make the most of conditions if some underlying moisture is there on offer.

For what it is worth, Mumbai Indians can also draw confidence from the fact that they have 20 wins in 34 meetings against Chennai Super Kings in a head-to-head battle in 13 out of the 15 editions where the two teams locked horns.

Full Squads

Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (captain), Suryakumar Yadav, Tim David, Dewald Brevis, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Tristan Stubbs, Vishnu Vinod, Cameron Green, Arjun Tendulkar, Ramandeep Singh, Shams Mulani, Riley Meredith Nehal Wadhera, Hrithik Shokeen, Arshad Khan, Duan Jansen, Piyush Chawla, Kumar Kartikeya, Raghav Goyal, Jofra Archer, Jason Behrendorff, Akash Madhwal.

Chennai Super Kings: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain and wicketkeeper), Devon Conway, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ambati Rayudu, Moeen Ali, Ben Stokes, Ravindra Jadeja, Ajinkya Rahane, Sisanda Magala, Shivam Dube, Dwaine Pretorius, Ajay Mandal, Nishant Sindhu, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Mitchell Santner, Subhranshu Senapati, Simarjeet Singh, Matheesha Pathirana, Mahesh Theekshana, Bhagath Verma, Prashant Solanki, Shaikh Rasheed, Tushar Deshpande.

(With PTI inputs)