Mumbai Indians vs Gujarat Lions, IPL 2017 Match 16, Preview and likely XI: Rohit Sharma’s MI look to tame Lions

Mumbai Indians are currently at second position in the points table while Gujarat Lions are second from bottom, ironically.

Rohit Sharma-led Mumbai Indians (MI) look to continue their fruitful journey against Gujarat Lions (GL) as the two teams lock horns in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2017 Match 16. To be played at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, the first of Sunday’s double-header is a chance for the hosts to maintain their dominance in the points table while Suresh Raina’s GL will have to pull up their socks and produce a near-flawless performance to snatch victory from MI. The hosts are currently at second position in the points table while GL are second from bottom, ironically. The hosts will be the hands down favourites for the match. LIVE CRICKET SCORECARD: Mumbai Indians vs Gujarat Lions – Match 16

Be it the recent controversy or be it his potential, Kieron Pollard took charge in MI’s last game against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the latter’s home, handing his team a crucial victory. The innings brings a lot of positive to the side, showing Pollard’s experience and maturity for the way he encountered with the top-order collapse and guided the side to the victory. His form will be good news for his side who are concerned with skipper Rohit Sharma not being able to deliver. Nitish Rana will surely be a batsman to watch out for MI, and so will be Krunal Pandya who never fails to impress with his all-round heroics. The likes of Parthiv Patel and Jos Buttler will have to fire.

With the ball in hand, Mitchell McClenaghan will have to try and become more economical, as he is one consistent bowler the team cannot do away with. Harbhajan Singh has shown the magic of his experience, emerging as a crucial part of the eleven of late. But the onus will be upon the pace duo, Jasprit Bumrah and Tim Southee to produce strong performances towards the beginning and the death overs as well.

GL have so far displayed many commendable performances but have failed to click as a unit. However, their performance in the previous match was a breather for the GL fans. Their persisting worry about finding a bowler who can inspire with his performance came to an end with Andrew Tye taking a 5-for on his IPL debut. With Basil Thampi, Praveen Kumar, Ravindra Jadeja and Dwayne Smith along with him, the bowling looks complete.

GL have big stars in the batting line-up and if they fire, it will hard to stop the side from putting up a gigantic total. Smith, Brendon McCullum, Suresh Raina and Aaron Finch contributed in a 171-run chase which GL completed easily. The team will look to carry forward this momentum to climb up the table with another victory.

Likely XIs:

MI: Parthiv Patel (wk), Jos Buttler, Rohit Sharma (c), Nitish Rana, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Hardik Pandya, Harbhajan Singh, Mitchell McClenaghan, Jasprit Bumrah, Tim Southee

GL: Dwyane Smith, Brendon McCullum, Suresh Raina (c), Dinesh Karthik (wk), Aaron Finch, Ishan Kishan, Ravindra Jadeja, Praveen Kumar, Basil Thampi, Andrew Tye, Shadab Jakati

Story so far: Mumbai Indians have won three of their four matches. Gujarat Lions have won only one of their three.

Advantage: Playing at home and with back-to-back victories at hand, MI surely are ahead of GL in the contest.

Squads:

Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Parthiv Patel (wk), Nicholas Pooran (wk), Krishnappa Gowtham (wk), Ambati Rayudu (wk), Lendl Simmons (wk), Kulwant Khejroliya, Karn Sharma, Saurabh Tiwary, Asela Gunaratne, Mitchell Johnson, Harbhajan Singh, Mitchell McClenaghan, Shreyas Gopal, Siddhesh Lad, Vinay Kumar, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Tim Southee, Lasith Malinga, Jagadeesha Suchith, Nitish Rana, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Jitesh Sharma, Deepak Punia

Gujarat Lions: Suresh Raina (c), Dinesh Karthik (wk), Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Smith, Praveen Kumar, Manpreet Gony, Dhawal Kulkarni, Aaron Finch, Shadab Bashir Jakati, Jason Roy, Shivil Kaushik, Dwayne Bravo, Munaf Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, Jaydev Shah, Pradeep Sangwan, James Faulkner, Akshdeep Nath, Andrew Tye, Chirag Suri, Basil Thampi, Ishan Kishan, Nathu Singh, Shubham Agarwal, Tejas Baroka, Pratham Singh, Shelley Shaurya.

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