Indian Premier League 2021 – PBKS vs MI 17th T20 – Punjab Kings vs Mumbai Indians at MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai.

Fantasy Article –

Hello and welcome to another match of the series which is going to be played between Punjab Kings & Mumbai Indians. Chris Gayle has failed in three successive innings, and the middle order has also struggled – with Nicholas Pooran registering three ducks in four games with a highest of 9. Meanwhile, despite KL Rahul’s strike rate issues resurfacing, it may not be a bad idea for the Kings skipper to take his time at the crease and lead the way with sensible batting while Shahrukh Khan’s familiarity with the conditions and his promising knocks so far, bodes well for the team. Punjab found the method with the ball straight away and all they’ll ask for is a few more runs from the batsmen.

Meanwhile, Mumbai Indians will be concerned about how their middle order has fared in the slow conditions. Ishan Kishan, Kieron Pollard and the Pandya brothers have struggled to come to terms with the pitch, and like Punjab, Mumbai too suffered a collapse in the last match which did not give their bowlers much wiggle room. A run-rate of 7.7 in the death overs with 7.1 balls per boundary this season – as compared to the run-rate of 12.43 and 3.4 balls for a boundary in IPL 2020 – MI have a glaring issue.

Pitch Report –

It wouldn’t be a surprise if the teams are presented with another slowish surface. In the first five matches in Chennai this season, teams batting first won on four occasions. However, the last two matches here have seen successful chases, and factoring in the dew, bowling first is likely to be the route taken at the toss.

• Bat 1st Ave Score – 151
• 1st Batting win Percentage – 56.25%
• Highest Score Chased – 176
• Wicket Split – PACE – 50.26% – SPIN – 49.74

Top Performer –

• MI – R Sharma – R-206, Ave – 41.20
• MI – T Boult – W-9, Ave – 16
• PBKS – P Kings – R-190, Ave – 38
• PBKS – A Singh – W-5, Ave – 19

Head 2 Head – Records

• Punjab – 12
• Mumbai – 14

The last time these two sides faced, they produced a memorable contest with a second Super Over being employed for the first time ever. Producing another thriller, immaterial of the conditions, isn’t beyond the scope of both teams.

Player match-ups – DETAILED

Having dismissed Hardik Pandya thrice in eleven balls, Mohammed Shami will be Punjab’s best bet against the MI allrounder in the death overs. Punjab might also be keen to introduce M Ashwin early considering that Rohit Sharma hasn’t been at his best against legspin in the past and that Suryakumar Yadav has been dismissed twice in eight balls and averages 4 against Ashwin.

Mumbai will be wary of the two left-handers in the top four of the Punjab line-up, which means Krunal Pandya’s bowling might be limited if they are out in the middle. Rahul Chahar, although a legspinner, has bowled well to left-handers this season and might combine with Jayant Yadav for bulk of the middle overs.

Things to know –

• KL Rahul has scored 580 runs in 12 innings against MI at an average of 64.44 and a strike rate of 131.22, with five fifty-plus scores. His last five innings vs MI: 94(60), 71*(57), 100*(64), 17(19), and 77(51).
• Kieron Pollard has scored at a Strike Rate of 200+ in five of his last six innings against Punjab. His last six innings vs Punjab: 50*(24), 50(23), 7(9), 83(31), 47*(20), 34*(12).
• Chris Gayle has crossed 20 only once in his last seven T20s. Hardik Pandya has also gone past 20 just once in his last eight T20 innings.
• Mumbai Indians pacers, in 18 overs combined in the powerplay this season, have only one wicket to speak for their efforts.

Probable Playing XI

PBKS – KL Rahul (c/wk), Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran, Deepak Hooda, Moises Henriques, Shahrukh Khan, Fabian Allen, M Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh

MI – Quinton de Kock (wk), Rohit Sharma (c), Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Rahul Chahar, Jayant Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult

BabaCric Expert Dream11 Team

Pre Analyzed Dream11 Team – PBKS vs MI

• Note – The team may change any time after the toss, if there are any changes please change immediately or you can join us on our official Telegram channel the link given down after the article.
• The team is based on player points with recent player stats also the team is based on real inner sanctum which helps to predict the team better.
• You can change the team if you have any doubt over it also feel free to comment to us.

Team – 1

C & VC Selection –

• C – KL Rahul, R Sharma, Q de Kock, S Yadav, M Agrawal
• VC – I Kishan, J Bumrah, R Chahar, M Henriques,