IPL 2016 | Live Streaming | Live Score | Points Table Daredevils need to keep wickets Highlights, IPL 2016 | Live Streaming | Live Score | Points Table Daredevils need to keep wickets Highlights.In IPL 9, 13 of the 14 games have been won by sides batting second. Experts feel a target makes life easier for batsmen, helping them chalk out strategy.In 15 games, only six have seen par scores (160 or more), and in these the side batting first has rarely lost wickets in a bunch at crucial situations.
Ahead of the Delhi Daredevils match against Mumbai Indians, Daredevils middle-order batsman Karun Nair too felt the need to keep wickets batting first. “Keeping wickets in hand is what I would do,” he said.
In the six games where teams have managed over 160, there have been partnerships and fewer wickets have been lost at crucial intervals. For instance, KXIP made 161 against Gujarat Lions and the innings was studded with partnerships. Kolkata Knight Riders made 187 against Mumbai because three of their first four batsmen scored. Royal Challengers scored 227 against Sunrisers Hyderabad with Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers putting up a show, and the side scored 191 against Daredevils with the top order firing again.
“Batsmen have gone for too much batting first and have fallen behind. As the tournament progresses, the balance will shift,” said Nair.His assessment is correct for the nine games that did not see a par score. In five of them, teams lost two or more wickets in power-play. Once that is the case, rebuilding is on the mind of batsmen. Mumbai lost four wickets against Pune, Daredevils lost four against Knight Riders, Sunrisers lost three against KKR and Mumbai lost two against Gujarat and Sunrisers.
It is Match 17 of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2016 as Mumbai Indians (MI) take on Delhi Daredevils (DD) at Ferozeshah Kotla Stadium, Delhi on Saturday. Both MI and DD have four points in hand currently, winning two of the matches they have played and looking at the squads they have, it is surely going to be a neck-to-neck competition between the two teams. The defending champions started off on a disappointing note while DD also had a similar run before both the sides manged to register two wins later on. With both the teams getting into the groove gradually, it will be interesting to see how a well-bound MI faces a freshly combined DD. Ahead of their clash, here is the likely XI for Mumbai Indians.
Top-order: The top-order of MI has their captain Rohit Sharma opening for the side. Rohit has led the team to two successful hunts in IPL and knows the game pretty well. With him on top, it becomes quite strong. For the other end, Rohit can opt for Unmukt Chand. The latter has before played well in IPL for the team and is coming from a good domestic season. His experience as a Delhi cricketer can also come in handy for the team. With the top two settled, the No. 3 spot goes to Ambati Rayudu who looks in a good touch too.
Middle-order: The pillar of middle-order has to be Jos Buttler. The England batsman has done decently with the bat so far but is expected to better that. Buttler is the one upon whom the team can rely post a top-order collapse and he will have to take up the responsibilities looking at the experience that he has. Following him, comes out Kieron Pollard who has strong hands to hit it all over the park while Harbhajan Singh can be sent after Pollard to complement the batting. After him, Krunal Pandya will be the right person to take the crease and add some last moment runs.
While MI has mostly huffed and puffed on their way to winning two matches out of five, the Daredevils have bounced back strongly after their loss to the Kolkata Knight Riders. The win against Kings XI Punjab gave them the confidence, and beating Royal Challengers Bangalore further solidified that belief. Opener Quinton de Kock, who is fast becoming their batting mainstay, has 184 runs in three innings, including a 51-ball 108. The untested batting order might be a concern, but Karun Nair's timely contribution, to go with Sanju Samson and Shreyas Iyer gives them hope.
