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Match Details
Date: September 19, 2021
Time: 7:30 PM (IST)
Venue: Dubai International Stadium, Dubai
Live Ball-by-Ball Commentary: SportsTiger App
Preview: After a long gap of over 4 months, the best T20 tournament in the world is finally set to resume once again and we just can't keep calm! There is surely a lot of excitement among the fans, especially with the return of the 14th edition of the league with the ever-entertaining 'El Clasico' of Indian T20 League. Oh yes! Chennai are set to lock horns with Mumbai in the first match of UAE leg, which will be match no. 30 of the season.
There is always a lot to look forward to whenever these two champion teams, who have a combined total of 8 Indian T20 League titles between them, go up against each other. However, things are poised even more interestingly for this encounter because of what happened when Mumbai and Chennai met few months back (on May 1) at Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.
Batting first, MS Dhoni's side posted a huge total of 218/4 in 20 overs on the back of fifties from Ambati Rayudu, Moeen Ali and Faf du Plessis. However, it was Kieron Pollard who stole the show that evening as his unbeaten 87-run knock off only 34 deliveries powered Mumbai to a sensational last-ball victory.
So while there is a sense of fresh start here in UAE, events that unfolded 4 months back are also expected to play a role in this match. While Chennai would be raring to redeem themselves and move to top of the table with a win, Mumbai would want to begin the second phase of the season on a positive note as they find themselves in close fight with other teams in that battle for top four.
Position in Indian T20 League Standings:
Chennai - Current Position: 2nd (10 points in 7 matches)
Mumbai - Current Position: 4th (8 points in 7 matches)
Team News:
Chennai- MS Dhoni's side might be without the services of Sam Curran and Faf du Plessis for the first game of the UAE leg. While Curran is set to be unavailable due to quarantine rules, du Plessis notably suffered a groin injury during recently-concluded Caribbean T20 League 2021. There are reports saying that Robin Uthappa could be set for his Chennai debut with Josh Hazlewood also expected to return to the side.
Mumbai- Mumbai will have almost all their key players available for this contest and all eyes will be on the group of 4 overseas stars which the franchise opts for in this contest. While Pollard, Boult and de Kock are expected to play, Nathan Coulter-Nile could get the nod ahead of Marco Jansen and James Neesham. There is also a possibility of Mumbai playing an extra spinner in form of Jayant Yadav or Piyush Chawla.
Head to Head (in Indian T20 League)
Matches Played - 31
Chennai - 12
Mumbai - 19
Key Players:
Ravindra Jadeja- The all-rounder is going to be the key player for Chennai in this match, especially considering the fact that the match is being played in Dubai. Jadeja could prove to be vital with both bat and ball on a relatively slow wicket which should definitely assist the spinners. He scored 131 runs in first half of the season in addition to 6 wickets and Chennai would hope that he can continue his good form in UAE.
Suryakumar Yadav- The right-handed batsman is one of the best players of spin in the current Mumbai side. He has the ability to maneuver the field to perfection with some absolutely out-of-the-box shots in his armoury. SKY scored 173 runs in 7 matches in first half of season at an explosive strike-rate of 144.16 and would certainly hope to convert his impressive starts to big scores in UAE.
Probable Playing XI
Chennai: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Robin Uthappa, Moeen Ali, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni (c/wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Josh Hazlewood, Lungi Ngidi/Imran Tahir, Deepak Chahar
Mumbai: Rohit Sharma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Rahul Chahar, Nathan Coulter-Nile/Jayant Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult