Kings XI Punjab and Mumbai Indians clash for their return meeting this season as two sides battling for points near the bottom of the table look for a crucial win on Wednesday.
The match will be played in Mohali, the home ground for Kings XI Punjab who won their away meeting between the two sides.
Kings XI Punjab scored their third win from seven matches on Sunday, registering a six-wicket victory over Mumbai Indians. Set a stiff target to chase, Shaun Marsh led the batting effort from the front in the absence of Adam Gilchrist, scoring 68 runs off just 40 balls.
He will also look for support from David Hussey who is fighting to overcome a poor phase. The bowlers, however, need to make improvements as only Praveen Kumar and Parvinder Apanna were able to pick up wickets. Azhar Mahmood, the Pakistani all-rounder, has looked rusty with the ball in his two appearances but his experience is valuable and tipped to come in handy.
With back-to-back defeats, Mumbai Indians see themselves lying in seventh place, having won three of their six matches so far. Their loss against Kings XI Punjab was not expected given the powerhouses they possess in comparison to their opponents.
Yet some of the big names in their team are struggling to fire as Kieron Pollard suffered yet another failure, while Sachin Tendulkar looked sluggish in his comeback match. James Franklin though impressed with his half-century opening the innings.
The team overall needs to bring an improvement in its behavior as well after Munaf Patel was fined for the second time in the tournament. Earlier, the captain Harbhajan Singh was given a reprimand as well.
The teams ideally want to be well-behaved as a Fair Play Award is also up for grabs at the end of the season.
The match in Mohali gets underway at 4.00pm local time.
What's your take? Write a comment (0 comments)