IPL 2018: KXIP vs MI, Match 34 - Kings XI Punjab Predicted XI

The Kings XI Punjab will be back in action after almost a seven-day break. The team has had some great time during this break. Some of the players flew to Goa to enjoy a mini-vacation in between the Indian Premier League (IPL). Now, they will be back in action against the Mumbai Indians on Friday. Also, Punjab have now shifted bases and will play the remainder of their home games in Indore. It will be interesting to see if Indore will end up being as lucky as Mohali was for them.

Punjab team is coming back from a heart-breaking loss against Sunrisers Hyderabad. In that encounter, they failed to chase down 133 runs in the second innings on what was a decent batting pitch. They lost that game by 13 runs and will wish to go past that loss as soon as possible. They are back afresh and will look to put up a decent fight against the Mumbai Indians.

However, they will have to be wary of the threat from the Mumbai camp. MI have got nothing to lose at the moment and they are absolutely destructive in stages like these. We’ve seen some great comebacks from them in the past. Considering all these factors, KXIP might make a few changes in their eleven.

Openers (Chris Gayle, KL Rahul)

The Universe Boss has shown great form in this IPL. He is playing with a cautious yet aggressive approach which is a deadly combo for a player like him. Given the adequate amount of rest that he has got, expect him to be drafted straight into the eleven. The big man has 252 runs in the four games that he has played this season which also includes 23 towering sixes.

He will be partnered by the ever so elegant KL Rahul. These two have scored a major chunk of KXIP’s runs this year and are absolutely devastating at the top. KXIP lost both their matches when either of these two has failed which is a matter of concern and also a big positive when you look at the other side of things. Rahul has accumulated 268 runs thus far in this tournament.

Middle Order (Mayank Agarwal, Karun Nair, Manoj Tiwary)

The middle-order batting is a huge matter of concern for KXIP. They haven’t quite lived up to the expectations once the openers are back in the hut. The last two games were low scoring for KXIP and the middle order failed terribly in both these games. Although all of these players are a class act, they haven’t been able to get their act together and will hope they get better after the break.

Mayank Agarwal, who had a terrific first-class season only managed to score 105 runs in 7 games. Similar is the case with Karun Nair. Karun hasn’t been in the best of forms this IPL. He has a slightly better record than Mayank. Karun has scored 186 runs in 7 games this season. Manoj Tiwary was roped in place of Yuvraj Singh the last game. Although he didn’t have a great game, he is expected to get another go. Skipper Ashwin looks to be in no mood to entertain the array of poor performances from Yuvi and he might be benched for this game as well.

All Rounders (Marcus Stoinis, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin)

Aaron Finch hasn’t performed well in the IPL. It makes no point for the franchise to stick to him even after that many disappointing performances. Furthermore, he is an overseas player. It is high time that they replace him and Stoinis could be the perfect fit. It is important to give all the players a go when the team is doing well and is placed at the top of the table. Also, Stoinis gets an edge over Miller as he can bowl too.

Axar Patel, back from injury, is most likely to make it to the XI. This gives Ashwin the flexibility of holding back Mujeeb during the powerplay overs. Axar in all probability will be replacing Barinder Sran in the XI. Ashwin has been terrific as a captain this IPL and also came good with the bat on a few occasions. Ashwin is also bowling well with those leggies coming in. KXIP will want him to be more consistent with the ball though.

Bowlers (Andrew Tye, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Ankit Rajpoot)

The bowling department looks premium on paper. The skipper has plenty of options available with Tiwary and Gayle capable of rolling their arms over. The bowling department was amazing in the last two games where they restricted the oppositions for under 150. The nice, little break in the middle will help the quicks get springs up their boots.

Tye is primarily being used in the second half of the innings just like CSK use DJ Bravo. He is bowling really well at the death and is picking some important wickets. 17-year-old Mujeeb Rahman is leaving the audience spellbound with his spells. He has picked 7 wickets till now and is going strong. Ankit Rajpoot was mindboggling the other night when he picked a fifer against SRH and will want to carry the form forward.

Here’s KXIP Predicted XI for the game against MI