Mumbai Indians will face the Delhi Daredevils in their first game of the tournament at the Buffalo Park in East London, in a match that assumes a lot of importance for Mumbai. Mumbai has only seven points from eight games, where as Delhi currently top the table with ten points.
For the Sports Pundit IPL Fantasy Experts, and especially those who have kept a lot of faith in the opening duo of Sachin Tendulkar and Sanath Jayasuriya. This could be a crucial match; if they do continue to hold on to both Tendulkar and Jayasuriya. For me though Jayasuriya remains a doubtful starter in the match, as there is a chance that had the skipper been someone else, he may have been replaced by either Mohammad Ashraful or a Graham Napier. With Tendulkar around, one cannot be sure about this change.
J.P. Duminy impressed yet again with his half century, and given his style of batting, he should be able to collect these 40s and 50s galore; and will be a tough choice between Tendulkar and Duminy to make for the Sports Pundit IPL fantasy experts. 
Amongst the batsmen from Delhi, Virender Sehwag’s return to the side hasn’t been confirmed yet, and so it is a trifle risky to get him in at this point. Gautam Gambhir should continue to lead the side, and my personal take is that he seems to have turned the corner, thus ensuring that he will walk into my playing eleven as a SPIFfer!
None of the wicket-keepers will make the cut for me; Pinal Shah simply does not inspitre confidence, where as Dinesh Karthik, as a batsman, hasn’t shown that he can show consistency in form, even though he played a couple of innings to remember.
The bowlers will be led by Lasith Malinga and Dirk Nannes, but one isn’t sure about Zaheer Khan. For me though, Malinga has bowled well in the last couple of games without taking too many wickets, and this may be his chance. I will select him over the other Mumbai bowlers. The question though is whether Dirk Nannes has an edge over the other bowlers, or whether he will be consigned as the 12th man and Glen McGrath brought in. this is something that only the Delhi management can answer. For me, Amit Mishra looks all set to play for my SPIF team!