IPL 2022: DC vs MI Preview, Playing XI, Live Streaming Details & Updates
Both Mumbai and Delhi were teams that had the least number of headaches until last year, with most players in their squad good enough to write their names on the team sheet. That has changed now.
The second fixture of the 2022 IPL will be a repeat of the 2020 IPL final as the Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals will have a go at each other. The Capitals, led by Rishabh Pant, topped the points tally last year before consecutive drubbings in the Playoffs brought their roll to an agonising halt. On the flip side, Mumbai, the five-time champions, had their 2021 campaign derailed after a decent Indian leg of the tournament, as they missed the bus for playoffs in a rare occurrence in the aftermath of multiple slip-ups in UAE.
Plenty has changed, though, in the little time that has passed since last year’s finale, with IPL marking its expansion by welcoming two new teams to take the already-stiff league a notch above in terms of competition. The rolling back to the 2011-like model means the dynamics have changed and the league, despite being in the 15th year of its existence, will have certain unknowns.
At the auction, meanwhile, both Mumbai and Delhi shopped well to stack their squads with some good players, but much like most other sides, they had certain boxes unticked by the end of it, having compromised on some areas. Both Mumbai and Delhi were teams that had the least number of headaches until last year, with most players in their squad good enough to write their names on the team sheet. That has changed now.
Mumbai no longer have the famed all-rounder trio of Pandya brothers and Kieron Pollard, with the Pandyas having gone to separate franchises, however, they did well to occupy the services of T20 freelancer Tim David, their biggest overseas purchase in an auction, to offset that loss.
Batting continues to remain the stronger suit of Mumbai with a well-settled top-order comprising the likes of captain Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav and uncapped Tilak Varma – spoken of highly by the franchise think tank – followed by big overseas all-rounders in Pollard and David alongside Daniel Sams and Fabian Allen. South African youngster Dewald Brevis remains another exciting prospect to keep an eye on.
Mumbai could not retain Jasprit Bumrah’s accomplice Trent Boult, but roped in Jofra Archer to give an equally mouthwatering prospect (if not more) in terms of a bowling combination. That, however, not until 2023, when Archer, currently out with his recurring elbow issue, will be in the reckoning. In Archer’s absence, the onus will lie upon Tymal Mills to bring his wealth of death-bowling experience to the fore, and expect from the likes of Riley Meredith, Sams and Jayadev Unadkat to assist.
The Capitals, who did not have the strongest purse at the auction, lost a big chunk of players despite trying hard to repurchase them. They made up for Shikhar Dhawan’s loss with a steal deal of David Warner, but the famed South African pace duo of Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje could not be kept intact as they lost the former apart from their premier spinner R Ashwin, for whom they have Kuldeep Yadav now.
Much like their Sunday rivals Mumbai Indians, Capitals’ strength lies in their batting, with their line-up studded with the likes of Prithvi Shaw, Warner, Mitchell Marsh and Pant apart from promising talents in the form of Sarfaraz Khan and India’s U19 World Cup-winning skipper Yash Dhull followed by some potent all-rounders like Rovman Powell, Shardul Thakur and Axar Patel.
However, Capitals’ bowling is a concern, not least because of the fitness concerns of Nortje who has been on the sidelines for long with a hip issue. Should he not be a hundred per cent, they will have to look at the pace of Lungi Ngidi and Kamlesh Nagarkoti to fill in, while the likes of Chetan Sakariya, Khaleel Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman will be expected to chip in too.
Pitch and conditions
Mumbai’s Brabourne Stadium, the venue for the encounter, last hosted a T20 fixture way back in 2015. In 11 IPL games at the venue so far, six times a total has been defended, with an average score of 173. Although given this is an afternoon encounter, there will be no role of dew, which is why batting first would not be a bad ploy.
Playing combinations for DC vs MI
Delhi Capitals
The Capitals will miss the services of Warner and Mitchell Marsh for their first few games, while also missing, at least for the first game, will be Ngidi and Rahman, who both were participating in the recent series between South Africa and Bangladesh. Despite key names absent, franchise head coach Ricky Ponting is confident of his team’s ability to make a “good start”.
Predicted XI: Prithvi Shaw, Tim Seifert, KS Bharat, Rishabh Pant (C & WK), Rovman Powell, Sarfaraz Khan/Mandeep Singh, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav/Lalit Yadav, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Chetan Sakariya
Mumbai Indians
Mumbai have availability concerns too, with Suryakumar Yadav set to miss the opening game on account of a hairline thumb fracture he picked during the T20I series against West Indies.
Predicted XI: Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma, Tim David, Kieron Pollard, Sanjay Yadav, Daniel Sams, Tymal Mills, Mayank Markande, Jasprit Bumrah, Jaydev Unadkat
DC vs MI Head-to-Head
Played – 30 | Delhi Capitals – 14 | Mumbai Indians – 16 | N/R – 0
DC vs MI Broadcast Details
Match Timings – 03:30 PM IST
TV – Star Sports Network
Live Streaming – Disney+Hotstar
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