The performance of spinners Moeen Ali and Mitchell Santner will also determine CSK’s fate against the five-time champions. However, there is a case to be made that Sisanda Magala, who is known for nailing wide yorkers for South Africa, should replace Santner in the starting XI.
The spotlight will be on Mi captain Sharma, who hasn’t exactly lit up the IPL stage in recent seasons. The Indian captain has had his fair share of hot starts, but a big knock has eluded him for quite some time.
In a small ground with short side boundaries, Jofra Archer’s bowling performance will be critical for MI, as the likes of Arshad Khan and Cameron Green could be lambs for slaughter for the in-form Ruturaj Gaikwad or Devon Conway.
Sharma has consistently faced questions about Bumrah’s absence, but the Mumbai Indians have also sought to fill gaps by bringing in Australian quick Riley Meredith in place of the injured Jhye Richardson, and Sandeep Warrier replacing the Indian star gives them another option.
The new Wankhede track is expected to provide some early assistance to fast bowlers, and Mumbai Indians, as the home team, will undoubtedly want to take advantage of it, especially given CSK’s struggles in this department in their last two games.
MI will also be concerned about the performance of their other batting star, Suryakumar Yadav, against an inexperienced attack. Young Tilak Verma batted alone to save MI’s blushes against RCB, and Punjab lad Nehal Wadhera was also impressive on debut.
However, the team will attempt a collective batting effort beginning with the top of the order. Gaikwad’s imperious form with the bat and pairing with the indomitable Conway is the best attack weapon for the ‘Yellow Brigade’ in the Chennai line-up.
Gaikwad has lit up the IPL stage in the best way possible, with two fifties in as many games, and his team would only hope that the right-hander can carry the momentum from one game to the next.
Conway failed to reach a half-century against the Lucknow Super Giants, but he put on a century stand with Gaikwad to signal his return to form.
Shivam Dube and Moeen Ali are crucial cogs in CSK’s middle-order, for whom the venerable Ambati Rayudu and Dhoni have also fired at critical junctures, making them appear to be a better batting line-up than MI.
Deepak Chahar has looked subdued on his return from a long injury lay-off, but the India and CSK seamer will hope to make the most of the conditions if some underlying moisture is available.
For what it’s worth, Mumbai Indians can take heart from the fact that they have 20 wins in 34 meetings against Chennai Super Kings in head-to-head matches in 13 of the 15 editions in which the two teams have met.
