IPL 2019 – Match 34: Delhi Capitals vs Mumbai Indians – MI Predicted Playing XI

Mumbai Indians (MI) could be slow starters in IPL. But the loss against the Delhi Capitals (DC) in the opening game of this season would have hurt them. They lost that match by 39 runs and the margin only reduced after Yuvraj Singh came to the rescue in the latter half of the game.

About three weeks later, the ‘Men in Blue and Gold’ has got another opportunity to possibly seek revenge. MI has got one of the most balanced sides in the tournament and could give any team a good run for their money. Despite Delhi winning their last three games, MI will still head into this match as the favourites.

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

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

Rohit Sharma is hitting the ball well and has shown signs of good form in all the games thus far. However, he is still yet to score a 50+ score in the tournament. The Mumbai skipper has got to play a long inning and should look to make a bigger impact in the next game.

Quinton de Kock was terrific in the last two matches. There were talks about dropping him a few days earlier. But for now, he might have sealed his spot. The left-hander provided the side with a good start with a quickfire 40 in the last match. MI will be hoping for more such exploits from him.

Middle Order (Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Kieron Pollard)

Suryakumar Yadav might not have got big scores on a consistent basis. But he’s been doing his job well and scoring some important runs batting at three. However, it is important for him to shoulder more responsibility and bat for a longer period of time. Ishan Kishan will continue to bat at number four.

The left-hander played an important knock in the last match. Even though he might have scored just 21 runs, Kishan took just 9 balls. Also, this knock came in a situation when his side was under extreme pressure. Kieron Pollard didn’t have much to do with the bat in the last encounter and he inflicted a direct hit from the deep to run the dangerous AB de Villiers out.

All Rounders (Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya)

The way Hardik Pandya is hitting the ball has been a delight for the eyes. The break a few months ago after the Talkshow controversy might have helped him a lot with his game. He understands his game better now and is building from strength-to-strength. He scored a 16-ball 37 against RCB and also picked up one wicket.

Krunal Pandya, on the other hand, didn’t have much to do. He just bowled one over where he conceded 10 runs and didn’t get an opportunity to bat. Both the Pandya brothers are must in the MI line-up and will cling onto their positions.

Bowlers (Rahul Chahar, Jason Behrendorff, Lasith Malinga, Jasprit Bumrah)

Even though Rahul Chahar has bowled attacking lines and lengths, he hasn’t been lucky with the wickets column. The leg-spinner is likely to get another opportunity before MI thinks of Mayank Markande again. The three pacers have been excellent for the team. Jason Behrendorff dismissed the great Virat Kohli cheaply in the last game. He swings the new ball both the ways and is an excellent addition to the MI line-up.

Lasith Malinga, making a comeback into the team, proved who the boss is. He picked up four wickets in the last match and was also the ‘Man of the Match’. Along with Jasprit Bumrah, the duo literally becomes unplayable at the death. They conceded just 35 runs in the last four overs of the match against RCB which shows how much of a difference they made together.

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