IPL 10, Qualifier 1, MI v RPS Preview: Rising Pune Supergiant sense superiority in Maharashtra derby

The stage is set for the all important Qualifier 1 of the IPL 10. After a series of closely contested games, the top two teams have been rewarded with two shots at the finals of the tournament. Rising Pune Supergiant will take on the table toppers of the league stage – the Mumbai Indians. The Maharashtra derby will get underway for the third time this season. And the best part for the fans would be to witness the game at the iconic Wankhede Stadium.

Coming into the game, both teams will be having the winning momentum at their backs. The Supergiant shot out the Kings XI Punjab in a virtual knockout game at Pune recently. After having bundled the opposition for 73, they managed to win the game by 9 wickets. On the other hand, the Mumbai Indians managed to outstage a strong Kolkata Knight Riders side with a side that had most of their benched players.

Talking about the most recent encounters, the RPS camp have beaten the MI team on both occasions this season. In their season opener, it was Steve Smith who led his side to a comfortable win. In the next game, Rohit Sharma could not return the favor as his side fell short by 3 runs despite his heroics. The Qualifier 1 will be played at the Wankhede Stadium and hence Mumbai Indians will take the confidence of being the home side going into the season.

Toss: MI won the toss and elected to field first

Quotes from the toss:

Steven Smith: The dew is gonna be a factor. We will have to play well. It gives us a second chance if we don’t do any good tonight. Hopefully, we will have a good night, tonight. We have one forced change, unfortunately, Stokesy ain’t there and Lockie Ferguson replaces him

Rohit Sharma: We are gonna field first. Looks a good wicket. Nice and flat. It has helped the chasing side. Fielding will play an important role as well. It has to be a collective performance. We have got four changes. McClenaghan, Malinga, Bumrah and Parthiv come in place for the guys that played in Kolkata.

Playing XI:

Rising Pune Supergiant: Ajinkya Rahane, Rahul Tripathi, Steven Smith(c), Manoj Tiwary, MS Dhoni(w), Daniel Christian, Washington Sundar, Lockie Ferguson, Shardul Thakur, Jaydev Unadkat, Adam Zampa

Mumbai Indians: Parthiv Patel(w), Lendl Simmons, Rohit Sharma(c), Ambati Rayudu, Krunal Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Karn Sharma, Mitchell McClenaghan, Lasith Malinga, Jasprit Bumrah

Focus will be on

Rahul Tripathi

Rahu Tripathi has been a revelation for the Rising Pune Supergiant this season. He has been one of the key players for the side in the lead up to the playoffs. At one stage in the tournament, he has six scores of 30s in the tournament which was a consistent feat to achieve. He already has 2 fifties to his name this season which includes a top score of 93. However, in the recent games, he has not quite been able to match his heroics of the first half of the season. Tripathi will be a key to RPS’s chances in the key encounter.

Rohit Sharma

The Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma needs to stand up and take responsibility in the big game like this. Rohit has had fair amount of success this season with three fifties to his name. However, there have been as many as 6 single digit scores to his name as well. Thus, Rohit would want to ensure that he hits the consistency strap this time around. In a key fixture such as this, the team would want his experience to come in handy for the team.

MS Dhoni

RPS wicket-keeper batsman MS Dhoni will have the additional responsibility to shoulder in the middle order. With Ben Stokes no longer available, the onus would be on MS Dhoni to get back into the role of the finisher for the team yet again. Also, Dhoni will be playing in the playoffs of the tournament on the 9th occasion in 10 years. Dhoni has not been at his very fluent best in the season thus far. Barring an odd fifty against Sunrisers Hyderabad, he is yet to showcase his mettle with the bat.

Team Combinations

Mumbai Indians

The Mumbai Indians made as many as 6 changes in their previous game. However, it is very unlikely that the team will go in with the players who have been warming the benches for them this season. All regular players are likely to make a comeback to the side. Lendl Simmons is expected to bat with Parthiv Patel in the opening slot. Rohit Sharma is set in the middle order. The team will have a strong choice to make between Ambati Rayudu and Nitish Rana.

Considering the form, Rayudu might get a nod ahead of Rana. Hardik Pandya and Kieron Pollard have settled in the role of the finisher. With Krunal Pandya fit again, the team has only got stronger. In the bowling department, Harbhajan Singh has been an asset with economical spells this season. In the pace department, they are likely to go with pace trio of Mitchell McClenaghan, Jasprit Bumrah, and Lasith Malinga.

Rising Pune Supergiant

The Rising Pune Supergiant will feel the heat as they will head into the game without the services of their premier player this season. Ben Stokes has already left for his national duties and that will certainly hurt the team in all departments of the game. The team is not having a like for like replacement for him. They will have two major choices to pick from – either rope in Lockie Ferguson or get the services of Usman Khawaja.

Khawaja is likely to make the cut in the playing eleven and might settle in the middle order. In other probability, Rahul Tripathi might open with him and Ajinkya Rahane could chip in at number 3. The middle order responsibilities will be shared by Steve Smith, MS Dhoni, and Manoj Tiwary. In the bowling department, Shardul Thakur and Jaydev Unadkat have been doing a decent job thus far.

Stat Attack

4 – Number of times the two teams have faced off against one another in the IPL history. RPS lead the head-to-head clash 3-1.

6.5 – The Economy rate of Harbhajan Singh this season. He has mostly bowled in the powerplay.

12 – Number of runs needed by Rahul Tripathi to reach 400 runs in this season of the IPL.

160 – The strike rate of with which Hardik Pandya has been batting this season – the 9th highest this season.