News Analysis India

Tag: Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders

  • Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya are recovering very well: Trent Boult

    By PTI

    ABU DHABI: Mumbai Indians pacer Trent Boult is not sure if skipper Rohit Sharma and all-rounder Hardik Pandya would feature in their next IPL game on Thursday but said both of them are recovering well.

    West Indies’ Kieron Pollard had led the side against Chennai Super Kings in the absence of Rohit, who has a dodgy knee while Pandya also missed the game due to a niggle.

    “They are both recovering very well. In terms of their selection for the next game, I’m not too sure what’s going on there. But day by day, they are improving,” Boult said during a virtual press conference on the eve of their game against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).

    “They are obviously two vital players in the XI for Mumbai. And we’re desperate to get them back. So, fingers crossed that they’ll be pretty good to go over the next couple of games,” added the New Zealand pacer.

    Boult said Rohit was “sorely missed” in the game against CSK but defended the team management’s decision to rest the star opener.

    “He is right up there in terms of experience and runs achieved in this format. So, it was a big hole but it was a good decision to make sure he is 100 per cent with the amount of cricket coming up. If he comes to the eleven, it will be brilliant, but we want to make sure he is 100 percent fit,” said Boult.

    The defending champions have a better record against KKR in the cash-rich league but Boult believes that history does not matter in this format.

    “It is more about starting afresh, every game is such a big game, every match is important now. History is history, it is nice to have previous results against them, but they are a quality side and we would not take them lightly,” said the left-arm pacer.

    Boult, 32, also felt that competing in the IPL was good preparation ahead of the T20 World Cup, which will be held in the UAE and Oman in October-November.

    “You could probably not have any better build-up to the tournament like the T20 World Cup. The focus is on what’s on for the next couple of weeks, but in terms of preparation, it is very good. Conditions can change quite quickly but having to deal with the heat and humidity is a big challenge at this stage. It is going to be interesting to see how conditions move over the course of the next few weeks,” Boult signed off.

  • MI eye improved batting effort against rejuvenated KKR

    By PTI

    ABU DHABI: Defending champions Mumbai Indians would look for inspiration from skipper Rohit Sharma, who is set to return to action when they take on a rejuvenated Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League match here on Thursday.

    Mumbai were without the services of Rohit and star all-rounder Hardik Pandya in their 20-run defeat to Chennai Super Kings on Sunday as both were rested as a precautionary measure due to having niggles.

    However, head coach Mahela Jayawardene has said Rohit should be fit and available for selection for the match against KKR.

    KKR, on the other hand, have registered a dominating nine-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in their opening game of the second leg of the league.

    Mumbai, who are currently placed fourth in the table with eight points, began their second leg campaign in a typical slow manner but with only half the tournament left to play, the defending champions need to win to stay in the top half of the league table.

    Rohit, who has been in fine touch of late, will be expected to continue in the same vein and help his side make amends of the inept batting performance against CSK.

    Apart from Saurabh Tewary, who hit an unbeaten half century, none of the other batsmen were able to capitalize on their starts against CSK, failing to chase down 156.

    On the other hand, the comprehensive win would have boosted KKR’s confidence.

    Having struggled in the first leg, KKR looked a completely different unit, in the manner in which they defeated RCB.

    The Eoin Morgan-led side, placed sixth in the points table, fired on all cylinders with mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy and star all-rounder Andre Russell wreaking havoc with the ball before openers Shubman Gill and debutant Venkatesh Iyer chased down the 93-run target with 10 overs to spare.

    Skipper Morgan had said that KKR would be dangerous opponents with nothing to lose in the second leg and the team certainly looked menacing against RCB.

    They will hope to continue playing in a similar aggressive fashion and win the title just like 2014 edition when they notched nine victories in a row.

    They will also hold the edge over their rivals having already experienced the conditions at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium against RCB.

    The Teams

    Kolkata Knight Riders: Eoin Morgan (captain), Dinesh Karthik, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Karun Nair, Nitish Rana, Rahul Tripathy, Shubman Gill, Harbhajan Singh, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Kuldeep Yadav, Lockie Ferguson, Pawan Negi, M Prasidh Krishna, Sandeep Warrier, Shivam Dube, Tim Southee, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakravarthy, Andre Russel, Ben Cutting, Shakib Al Hasan, Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Sheldon Jackson, Tim Seifert.

    Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (captain) Quinton de Kock, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Aditya Tare, Anmolpreet Singh, Chris Lynn, Saurabh Tiwary, Anukul Roy, Arjun Tendulkar, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, James Neesham, Jayant Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Marco Jansen, Yudhvir Singh, Adam Milne, Dhawal Kulkarni, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohsin Khan, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Piyush Chawla, Rahul Chahar, Trent Boult.

    Match starts at 7:30 pm IST.

  • Confidence will go high after great team effort against KKR: Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma

    By ANI
    NEW DELHI: After a win against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Tuesday, Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma said that the team’s confidence will go high from here and termed the victory as a “great team effort”.

    Mumbai Indians defeated KKR by 10 runs thanks to an all-round bowling performance from the Rohit Sharma-led side. Andre Russell’s five-wicket haul saw Mumbai Indians get bundled out for 152 after batsman Suryakumar Yadav’s (56) quickfire knock. In response, KKR was restricted to 142/7.

    KKR was right on track for an easy win but Rahul Chahar spun a web and removed the top four batsmen before Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult’s fiery spell handed Mumbai Indians the match.

    “It was a great team effort. Everyone chipped in with the performances which are always nice when you have team performances like that. The confidence can only go high from here. I’m very proud of the boys,” Rohit said in a video posted by MI’s official Twitter handle.

    “When you win a game like, it is always nice and shows that the team has a lot of fight in it. A lot of credit has to go to our bowling coach,” he added.

    Rohit also bowled one over in the match, however, he twisted his ankle on the way to delivering his first ball but it wasn’t that serious and he continued the over. He gave 14 runs off that over.

    “I enjoyed my one over. It was after a long time but I thought I could just get in and bowl that over with two left-handers and the pitch not seeming easy for the batters. I thought it will a great idea and a lot of guys from the team backed me to bowl that over,” he said.

    MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene lauded the bowling unit for their fightback in the game and added that they are adapting to the conditions.

    “Credit to Rohit and the team, the way they handled the situation there in the middle. Definitely in the second half, we had to dig deep. The bowling unit kept us in the game and created few opportunities. At the end, we managed to cross over the line. We needed that win, just to get on the board. It is not the easiest conditions, so we need to be better adapting to these conditions. I think the bowling unit was fantastic,” he said.

    “Even in the first game, they kept us in the game. Today was a great effort, especially Rahul to come back strongly picking up those wickets in the middle. Gave us that crucial breakthrough as well and then Bumrah, Krunal bowling at the back end and Boult coming in at the end just to finish things off,” Jayawardene added.

    Mumbai Indians will next take on SunRisers Hyderabad here at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Saturday.