Mumbai Indians host Sunrisers Hyderabad in a battle for playoffs

We are here in the final stages pf the IPL league round and as things stand tonights opponents Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad stand third and fourth respectively as they look to secure a play off spot a crucial encounter

With both the teams having played 12 games each, Mumbai Indians hold a clear advantage over Sunrisers Hyderabad as they sit above them in the league table with 14 points to their name while SRH has 12 points.

A win for MI will seal their qualification spot, while a victory for SRH will help them cement their place as the 4th team and qualify for playoffs. As the scenario is, if SRH lose, they will have to depend on DC to beat RR in their last match and then win their last league game against RCB to qualify. While Mumbai Indians need a victory from any of their 2 games irrespective of other results to qualify for the play offs.

Mumbai Indians look to shrug off their recent loss against and KKR and get back to win tonight’s match to seal a spot for themselves in the playoffs while Sunrisers will look to carry their winning momentum and defeat Mumbai in their own backyard.

Battles to watch out for :

Rohit Sharma vs Bhuvneshwar Kumar –

Mumbai Indians will rely on their skipper to set up a solid foundation for the team along with fellow opener Quinton De Kock. SRH will depend on the Indian swing king Bhuvneshwar to uproot his fellow countrymen and get the match momentum in their favour.

Hardik Pandya vs Rashid Khan –

MI allrounder Hardik Pandya has been sensational for this season with the bat. His ball hitting capabilities have been used well also by the Mumbai management. Hardik Pandya can create havoc and single-handedly snatch away the match from any opposition. Rashid Khan seems to be returning to his former best after a wonderful display against KXIP. It will be intriguing to see what the Afghan master has planned to keep Hardik Pandya from going all out.

With the average first innings score at Wankhede being 187, we can surely excepting a high scoring match and a runs fest from tonight’s encounter.

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