Delhi Capitals vs. Mumbai Indians: 34th IPL Match Preview

Delhi Capitals vs. Mumbai Indians: 34th IPL Match Preview

Delhi Capital and Mumbai Indians will lock horns in the match 34 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in Delhi on Thursday. Both teams are clearly in a strong position as they have 10 points each after playing eight matches and a win can further strengthen their position on the league table. In the previous meeting between both teams earlier in the competition, it was Delhi who came out on top with a 37-run margin.

Delhi will be coming in the match full of confidence after registering an impressive 39-run win in their previous match against Sunrisers Hyderabad. In the batting department, the home side will be relying on the likes of captain Shreyas Iyer, veteran opener Shikhar Dhawan, young Prithvi Shaw and wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant to score bulk of the runs, whereas on the bowling front, the onus will be on the South Africa's duo of Kagiso Rabada, Chris Morris and India's duo of Ishant Sharma and Axar Patel to provide timely breakthroughs.

On the other hand, Mumbai too will come in the match full of confidence after registering a thumping five-wicket win against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in their previous match. In the batting department, the visitors will be relying on the likes of captain Rohit Sharma, South Africa's Quinton de Kock and West Indies' Kieron Pollard to score bulk of the runs, whereas on the bowling front, the onus will be on the pace attack consist of India's Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya

Delhi Capital and Mumbai Indians will lock horns in the match 34 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in Delhi on Thursday. Both teams are clearly in a strong position as they have 10 points each after playing eight matches and a win can further strengthen their position on the league table. In the previous meeting between both teams earlier in the competition, it was Delhi who came out on top with a 37-run margin.

Delhi will be coming in the match full of confidence after registering an impressive 39-run win in their previous match against Sunrisers Hyderabad. In the batting department, the home side will be relying on the likes of captain Shreyas Iyer, veteran opener Shikhar Dhawan, young Prithvi Shaw and wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant to score bulk of the runs, whereas on the bowling front, the onus will be on the South Africa's duo of Kagiso Rabada, Chris Morris and India's duo of Ishant Sharma and Axar Patel to provide timely breakthroughs.

On the other hand, Mumbai too will come in the match full of confidence after registering a thumping five-wicket win against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in their previous match. In the batting department, the visitors will be relying on the likes of captain Rohit Sharma, South Africa's Quinton de Kock and West Indies' Kieron Pollard to score bulk of the runs, whereas on the bowling front, the onus will be on the pace attack consist of India's Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Sri Lanka's Lasith Malinga and Australia's Jason Behrendorff to prove timely breakthroughs.

Pitch Conditions: The pitch at the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium in Delhi is a tricky one as usually it favours spinners due to its dry nature; however there is the odd match in between where tons of runs are scored as well.

Player Recommendations:

Shikhar Dhawan (Batsman)

First in the list of key players features Delhi Capitals' Shikhar Dhawan. The veteran left-hander is by far the most experience batsman in the young Delhi side and had a lot of responsibility coming into the tournament which he fulfilled up till this point as he is the second-highest run-getter for the franchise with 256 runs at an average of 36.57, which included two half-centuries. With the qualification to the playoffs well and truly on the cards, Delhi team management will be hoping for the continuation of the good work from their senior pro.

Rishabh Pant (Wicketkeeper)

Second in the list of key players features Delhi Capitals' Rishabh Pant. The 21-year-old is having a great time with the bat in hand as he has already scored 245 runs in eight outings at an average of 35 and strike-rate of 161.18. After being overlooked for the World Cup squad, Pant will be eager to produce another stellar performance to prove that he was unfairly dropped from the contingent for the mega event.

Hardik Pandya (All-rounder)

Third in the list of key players features Mumbai Indians' Hardik Pandya. The 25-year-old is a proven talent in white-ball cricket and is having an excellent tournament where he has scored 186 runs at an average 46.50 (best of any Mumbai batsman)  with a staggering strike-rate of 191.75, whereas with the ball in hand, Pandya has seven wickets in eight outings. Those numbers shows why Pandya is irreplaceable for Mumbai and the team management will be hoping their star performer will continue his good form in the match against Delhi Capitals.

Kagiso Rabada (Bowler)

Last in the list of key players features Delhi Capitals' Kagiso Rabada. The South Africa international is having an outstanding tournament with the ball in hand as he is the leading wicket-taker with 17 scalps in just eight outings at an outstanding strike-rate of just 10.9. Those numbers shows why Rabada is being termed as the best young bowler in the world and Delhi will be hoping to see another match-winning spell from the star pacer on Thursday.

Pick of uncapped player: Rahul Chahar

Predicted Playing XI:

Delhi Capitals: Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer (captain), Rishabh Pant (wicketkeeper), Colin Ingram, Chris Morris, Axar Patel, Keemo Paul, Rahul Tewatia, Kagiso Rabada, Ishant Sharma

Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (captain), Quinton de Kock (wicketkeeper), Suryakumar Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Ishan Kishan, Krunal Pandya, Rahul Chahar, Jason Behrendorff, Jasprit Bumrah, Lasith Malinga

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Azeem Siddiqui
Passionate sports follower in the field of sports journalism for more than five years. Loves writing about cricket, football, and tennis.
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