Hosts look to end winless run when they take on fellow strugglers Delhi at Wankhede today
Delhi Capitals’s players during their practice session on Saturday. Pic/Satej Shinde
It’s a battle of strugglers at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday as hosts Mumbai Indians (MI) take on Delhi Capitals (DC) in the IPL. The visitors have two points while MI have none, but DC have played a game more than Hardik Pandya & Co’s three matches which ended in defeats.
Surya returns
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Most spectators at Wankhede would want to see MI open their account. Similar anticipation would centre around Suryakumar Yadav, who has to fire in his comeback game.
The World No. 1 T20 batter, who scored a 56-ball 100 against South Africa in Johannesburg T20I in his last outing in December 2023, has fully recovered from his ankle injury and sports hernia surgery. The Mumbai batter, who had a grueling batting session on Friday, preferred to rest on Saturday and is set to make a strong comeback at his home ground.
Also Read: IPL 2024 | Surya: A ray of hope for Mumbai Indians?
Former MI captain Rohit Sharma was present for the practice session, but did not bat like the rest of his teammates.
“Mumbai are a good team. We expect them to play well. They have been a quality side for many years. T20 is a format where you can lose two-three games on the bounce. This is their home, a great venue. It’s gonna be a good game,” said DC’s Director of Cricket and former India captain Sourav Ganguly.
DC skipper Rishabh Pant, who plays his first game at the 2011 World Cup final venue after recovering from a life-threatening road accident, could well be itching for play to begin. “Rishabh is fully fit. His form has been fantastic,” said Ganguly. But where being in India’s T20 World Cup squad is concerned, Ganguly wants Pant to play some more matches. “He [Pant] is ’keeping and batting well, but let him play a few more matches. If the national selectors want him, I should be able to judge in another week,” Ganguly added.
Pant has made his IPL return a memorable one by scoring a couple of half-centuries (51 versus Chennai Super Kings and 55 against Kolkata Knight Riders).
‘Hopeful of playing the final’
Meanwhile, MI’s young batter Naman Dhir, 24, who has scored 50 runs in three games and could be benched to accommodate Surya, said: “The team’s atmosphere is still great and all the players are maintaining the strong bond they have. It is not like we are out of the game. We have lost three games, but can still do well in the remaining 11 matches and will qualify for the playoffs. Hopefully, we will play in the IPL 2024 final,” said Dhir.
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