IPL 2019 – Match 19: Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Mumbai Indians – MI Predicted Playing XI

Beating the defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) must have done great deeds in the Mumbai Indians’ (MI) camp. As usual, they haven’t had the best of starts to this season. But, the ‘Men in Blue and Gold’ are slowly catching up and making their mark in the tournament. For their next assignment, they will be taking on the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the RGI Stadium in Hyderabad.

Beating SRH at their home isn’t an easy task by any means. MI would have learnt this the hard way when they missed the chance to defeat the ‘Orange Army’ in Hyderabad last year. Heading into this all-important fixture, the Mumbai management has got a few important calls to take. They’ll have to see what they can do about a few underperforming players and should also replace Lasith Malinga who’s gone back to Sri Lanka.

Here is the Predicted Playing XI for the Mumbai Indians (MI):

Openers (Quinton de Kock (wk), Rohit Sharma (c))

Quinton de Kock has been highly inconsistent for Mumbai this season. Even though MI doesn’t have better overseas options than him, they have got good Indian wicket-keepers in the ranks. However, it is a little too early to judge him and think about a replacement. He is coming off a terrific season back in South Africa and played one or two valuable knocks. He is terrific behind the stumps as well and MI should continue with him.

Rohit Sharma‘s case also has been similar. The skipper has failed to play the long innings thus far in this tournament. It is very unusual to see him struggle with this aspect of his game as he has got three double centuries in ODI cricket. Sharma is just one knock away from getting back to his best and loves batting in Hyderabad. He’d be looking forward to breaking the shackles with the bat in the next game.

Middle Order (Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan)

It is a great sign to see Suryakumar Yadav scoring some runs in the last game. He enjoys the ball coming on nicely and is dangerous once he settles in conditions like these. Both the last two games in Hyderabad were high-scoring and Yadav will be licking his lips looking at the wicket.

Mumbai might replace Yuvraj Singh with Ishan Kishan in this game. Against a quality bowling line-up like that of SRH, Yuvi might find it tough. He hasn’t done well with the bat in the last two games either. Ishan brings an aggressive flavour to this middle-order. Even if Yadav takes up a few deliveries, Ishan can make up for it with his big hitting.

All Rounders (Krunal Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya)

The Mumbai Indians worked out a great move by batting Krunal Pandya at five in the last game instead of Kieron Pollard. The elder Pandya knows how to build an innings and can also hit the big shots when required. Him batting at five adds a lot more stability to the side.

Kieron Pollard and Hardik Pandya will take up the roles of the finishers in this side. They were terrific at the end in the last game and were a delight to watch. Hardik also fared well with the ball and was the ‘Man of the Match’. Although Pollard is bowling during the practice sessions, he doesn’t seem to be fully confident of emulating it in the match scenarios.

Bowlers (Mayank Markande, Jasprit Bumrah, Mitchell McClenaghan, Jason Behrendorff)

Mayank Markande was unwell the other night and thus had to be sidelined. However, it is highly likely that he’ll return to the eleven for this game. MI will not have the services of Lasith Malinga for this match. It remains uncertain if he’d come back to take part in the league after the completion of domestic ODI tournament. The options they have are Ben Cutting and Alzarri Joseph apart from Mitchell McClenaghan.

But the Kiwi cricketer is the more trusted of the lot and might get a go. Jasprit Bumrah will shoulder the pace responsibilities of the side. With Mitchell McClenaghan and Jason Behrendorff in the eleven, he might not have to open the bowling. He is more likely to operate at the death and possibly bowl one or two overs in the middle.

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