Hot, hot and hot will be the theme for today’s game between the Delhi Daredevils and the Mumbai Indians. After a remarkable run chase against the Royal Challengers Bangalore, Rohit Sharma will be leading his troops to a hot Feroz Shah Kotla where they will face off against the in-form Delhi Daredevils. The Mumbai Indians have registered just a couple of victories from the 5 games they have played so far in this season of IPL 2016. The Daredevils themselves pulled off an unexpected victory against the Royal Challengers in their last encounter and they seem to have found the right balance in their team. With an experienced Zaheer khan on their side, they are certainly one the team to look out for in this tournament.
The Mumbai Indians have no shortage of experience, with legends Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Pointing in their dugout. This certainly has motivated the youth in the team to perform above expectations and showcase their talents. Having already played the most number of games in this season, the Mumbai Indians will go all guns blazing to crack a spot in the top 4.
These will be testing conditions for both teams as the weather gods have shown absolutely no mercy, recording temperatures of over 40-degree Celcius in the past few days in Delhi. With the match set to start in the evening, it will be an interesting contest between the bat and ball as the Kotla pitch has been competitive to play on.
Match Date and Time: 23 April 2016, 1600 hrs IST
Match Venue: Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
Weather:
Temperature: Max 39°c, Min 37°cHumidity: Max 7%Wind: 20 km's per hour
Pitch Report: On a dry Kotla pitch, anything above 165 will be a good score to defend.
In-Depth Analysis:
The Mumbai fans were ecstatic to see their Captain Rohit Sharma back to his sizzling best. The Indian opener, who looked out of sorts in the recent ICC World T20 tournament, has managed to find his charisma and looks set to get a big one against the Daredevils. However, with only a single 50 run stand for the opening wicket, the Mumbai Indians should concentrate on setting a good platform for their explosive middle order.
A major plus for the Mumbai Indians is the return of Kieron Pollard’s form. The man from the Caribbean did not feature in the recent ICC World T20 and had been quiet in this tournament until he cut loose against the Challengers and unleashed his wrath with an unbeaten 39 of just 19 deliveries, hitting three massive sixes.
Losing Lendl Simmons to an injury, Parthiv Patel has stepped up to the occasion and has got a few starts to his name. The 31-year-old opener has shown that he can give the Mumbai Indians a quick start to their innings and will be hoping to put on a good show to get the attention of the selectors.
The Mumbai Indians have got a wealth of bowling experience in their unit with the Kiwi duo Tim Southee and Mitchell McClenaghan setting fire to the pitch with their pacey swing, making the batsmen dance to their tunes. Also, with the emergence of the left-arm all-rounder, Krunal Pandya contributing with the bat and ball, Mumbai seem to be on the right track.
Scoring a magnificent hundred against the Royal Challengers Bangalore, Quinton de Kock will be the key to Delhi’s fortunes. The left-handed South African has been instrumental in helping the Daredevils getting a couple of victories. Blasting his way through the powerplay period, de Kock has scored a fifty in addition to his hundred in the 3 matches played so far.
Another man who has been missing this season is Shreyas Iyer. The young Mumbai-born batsmen played exuberantly in the IPL 2015 but hasn’t quite hit his mark this season. He has been due for a while now and might just get going against the Indians. With Karun Nair, JP Duminy,
and Chris Brathwaite filling up the middle order, the Daredevils will enjoy the Kotla wicket.
The bowling unit of the Daredevils has been boosted by the return of Mohammed Shami, who put up an impressive display of fast bowling against the Challengers, will only get better as the tournament progressed. Skipper Zaheer Khan has been effective with the new ball partnering well with the South African Chris Morris. Leggie Amit Mishra has kept the opposition quiet with his spin bowling, picking up a total of 5 wickets and is among the top wicket takers of this season.
The odds are evenly matched for this game, with both teams matching each other in every department. A simple misfield, a dropped catch or a run out might just decide the fate of these teams.
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