The defending champions Mumbai Indians (MI) will be locking horns with Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the 31st match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Tuesday. MI had won a close win against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in their last game of IPL 2021 and after registering a comprehensive win over Rasjtahn Royals (RR).
As for SRH, they have got off to a disappointing start in the tournament, losing 6 games so far out of the 7 they have played. They would be desperate to register their second win of the season and earn a couple of points to stay in the race to qualify for the playoffs. With MI taking on SRH on Tuesday, We look at the 3 player battles to watch out for.
#1 Quinton de Kock vs Khaleel Ahmed
Quinton de Kock has been doing well in IPL 2021 as he played an impressive knock of 70*. Most times he has come out to bat, De Kock has looked in fine touch. If anything, they would want bigger scores from him. De Kock is someone who can get frustrated while facing a bowler like Khaleel Ahmed.
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The left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed has suddenly become hugely significant with Bhuvneshwar and Natarajan’s injuries. After finishing with impressive figures of 3 for 21 in the win over Punjab Kings (PBKS), Khaleel conceded a lot of runs against DC. He will have to raise his game against MI.
#2 Suryakumar Yadav vs Rashid Khan
Suryakumar Yadav has been enjoying a purple patch in his IPL career in recent times. He has taken on the bowling more often than not. Although he has failed to convert knocks into big innings, there is no reason to believe Yadav will change his batting style going into the clash against SRH. One thing is for sure if Yadav stays at the crease during the middle and end overs, he will be expected to face SRH leggie, Rashid Khan. The Afghan bowler, on expected lines, has been SRH’s best bowler on the show thus far. Khan has given literally nothing away while claiming crucial wickets
#3 Jonny Bairstow vs Jasprit Bumrah
SRH opener, Jonny Bairstow wasn’t at his usual best in the recent games against CSK and RR. He played fast bowlers without any trouble and was handling the slow bowlers pretty well. However, he threw his wickets away to Sam Curran and Rahul Tweatia, SRH crumbled and came second best in a chase. Bairstow will be keen to correct his mistakes in the game against MI.
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Considering how heavily SRH is dependent on Bairstow in terms of batting, he will have to give a decent start to the team by negotiating the likes of Jasprit Bumrah. The MI pacer, like every year, has been tough to get away. In the match against RR, he bowled superbly with a miserly spell fo 1/15. If SRH fancies winning the game against MI, it would be crucial for Bairstow to tackle Bumrah smartly.
