Rising Pune Supergiant have already defeated Mumbai Indians thrice this season and will look to do the same tonight.
Mumbai have solid squad which is full of experience and also youngsters brimming with enthusiasm and drive to win and take the team towards the title. The youngsters would be bolstered by the presence of experienced heads in Rohit Sharma, Harbhajan Singh, Kieron Pollard, Ambati Rayudu, Lasith Malinga.
On the other hand Rising Pune Supergiant have the most number of match winning players among all the teams in IPL. Ajinkya Rahane and Rahul Tripathi can provide quick starts, creating pressure early on for the bowlers. The middle order is a strong combination of experience and quality with the likes of Steve Smith, MS Dhoni, Ben Stokes and Manoj Tiwary which have the ability to chase any target when performing at their best.
While Mumbai finished with 10 wins in 14 matches, RPS managed 9 wins. Both the sides have been equally impressive and have delivered some standout performances with the bat and the ball.
Batting Performances:
Simmons and Pollard will look to make a comeback in the qualifier after not delivering with the willow in the last match. Rohit will hope to convert his short innings into bigger one. Rising Pune Supergiant’s batsmen didn’t get much opportunity to bat in the last match, Dhoni will be looking to fire some runs and Smith needs to chip in by spending more time at the crease and play a captain’s knock on the big occasion.
RPS, on the other hand, found a gem in their batting line-up in the form of Rahul Tripathi. He has provided the best starts to his side and has gone on to produce a few amazing innings.
Meanwhile, the power hitters in Mumbai’s batting unit comprising of Kieron Pollard, Parthiv Patel and Jos Buttler have kept Mumbai’s batting unit powerful as usual as they hold the ability to single-handedly win matches.
The bowling too has come good with a lethal combination of Lasith Malinga and Jasprit Bumrah. Karn Sharma has played his role superbly.
Strength of RPS:
A strong batting unit with some world class batsman like Steve Smith and Mahender Singh Dhoni is their biggest plus point. The RPS squad is filled with superstars who are capable of winning the match on their own. These players have done it all at the international level for a very long time now and also in the league in the past
Strength of MI:
Jasprit Bumrah has not only evolved as a cricketer but has also transformed himself into a wicket-taking bowler. Considered to be one of the best death overs bowlers in the current era, Bumrah showed his brilliance with the new ball, when captain Rohit Sharma asked him to bowl in the Super Over against Kolkata Knight Riders.
OUR PREDICTION:
Mumbai and Pune have already faced each other three times in this season and all the three games were won by the Supergiant, two in the league stage and then in the Qualifier 1. This match is being held in Hyderabad, and so none of the teams will have any home advantage. Both these teams have had great seasons, and both would give their all to pick up the ultimate prize. But Pune has the confidence of having beaten Mumbai thrice already, last time in the Qualifier 1 itself, and this gives them a slight upper hand in this contest.
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