Defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT) are set to take on five-time champions Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on May 12.
With a comprehensive win against Royal Challengers Bangalore in their previous game, MI is looking to boost their chances for another IPL title by addressing their bowling weaknesses.
Tilak Varma returns
MI is hoping to bring back Tilak Varma into their playing XI for the match against GT. Varma has scored 274 runs at a strike rate of 158 this season. He missed the last couple of games due to illness, but is expected to come back in if fit.
MI’s skipper, Rohit Sharma, has only scored 191 runs in the 11 games this season. Having another inconsistent season, he has been heavily criticized by former cricketers. MI hopes that their talismanic captain can soon get back to his best to answer his critics in style.
MI started the season with two consecutive losses against RCB and CSK. However, they bounced back with three wins in a row against DC, KKR, and SRH. After losing two consecutive games against PBKS and defending champions GT, MI chased down 213 against RR at the Wankhede Stadium. MI then put on a chasing master class as Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav’s helped their side chase down 215 against PBKS. MI lost to CSK for the second time this season in their last game.
Explosive batting to bail out bowlers
Most of MI’s games this season have followed a similar pattern. The bowlers concede 200 or more runs, but the batters bail them out with their explosive innings. In their last game, Suryakumar Yadav’s 83 off 35 balls powered MI to a six-wicket win after Faf du Plessis (65 off 41) and Glenn Maxwell (68 off 33) fifties had propelled RCB to a competitive 199/6.
MI’s bowling attack has been a concern for them this season. Jason Behrendorff and Riley Meredith have picked up a combined 18 wickets so far, but have conceded more than 10 runs an over. Chris Jordan replaced Jofra Archer in the squad against RCB but conceded 48 runs in his four overs. Meredith could replace Jordan in the next game. Piyush Chawla has been the surprise package for MI so far this season. The veteran spinner is the top wicket-taker for the side with 17 wickets so far at an economy of 7. Cameron Green has also chipped in with six wickets.
