Punjab’s overseas force failing to fire in unison
The biggest strength for Mumbai Indians in this tournament has been the performance of their middle-order batsmen. Delhi youngster Nitish Rana has been the star for MI and with two important half-centuries under his belt, he has been an absolute revelation in this year’s IPL.
Rana has found perfect support in Pandya brothers - Krunal and Hardik - who have impressed everyone with their all-round performances. The three youngsters have scored a combined 362 runs in the tournament till now and as a result, they’ve been a constant in most of MI’s successful run chases.
Although the Indian youngsters have stolen the show for MI till now, it has not stopped West Indies batsman Kieron Pollard from showing off his destructive batting skills.
The 29-year old has played some good knocks for his team this season and his 47-ball 70 against Royal Challengers Bangalore helped them seal an unlikely win at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
The only concern for MI has been the form of their skipper Rohit Sharma. He had a rough start to the season and could manage just 9 runs in the first four matches.
However, he made a strong comeback against Gujarat Lions with an unbeaten 40 off 29 deliveries and that can be the morale boost the India batsman needed to regain his old form.
On the other hand, it has been a disappointing week for Kings XI Punjab. After winning their first two matches convincingly against Rising Pune Supergiant and Royal Challengers Bangalore, KXIP went on to lose three in a row and are currently fifth in the IPL table with four points.
The biggest problem for KXIP has been the form of their overseas batsmen who have failed to perform in the last three matches. Glenn Maxwell and Hashim Amla played brilliantly in the first two matches, but both of them have struggled to score runs ever since.
The situation has been even worse for David Miller and Eoin Morgan as both of them have failed to produce a single big innings in the tournament so far.
Historically, Mumbai Indians have a slender lead over Kings XI Punjab as they have won 9 out of their last 17 meetings.
However, KXIP have not lost a single match at the Holkar Stadium in Indore this season and they will surely be looking to put their IPL campaign back on track with a win over the in-form MI at their lucky ‘home’ ground.
The 2017 Indian Premier League has been sort of a rollercoaster ride for Kings XI Punjab till now. They were off to a brilliant start after two convincing victories at home, but it has been all downhill from there.
They were completely outplayed in the next two matches where they faced heavy defeats against Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Daredevils. Things did not improve for them as they slumped to their third loss in a row when they were defeated by Sunrisers Hyderabad on Monday.
Kings XI Punjab went into this year’s tournament with a heavy arsenal of overseas batsmen, but they have been quite ineffective till now. A small case in point - the quartet of Hashim Amla, Glenn Maxwell, Eoin Morgan and David Miller contributed just 24 runs off 36 ball against Sunrisers Hyderabad and that cannot be good news for a team who are struggling to win matches.
Hashim Amla had a wonderful start to the season with a fifty in the second game, but he has failed to shine ever since. Amla has scored just 46 runs in the last 3 matches and as a result, Kings XI Punjab have failed to form any substantial partnership for the first wicket.
The situation is worse for his compatriot - David Miller - as the Proteas batsman has been one of the weakest links of the side. With just 83 runs from 5 matches, he is yet to deliver a solid innings in this year’s tournament.
Glenn Maxwell also came into the tournament with a lot of confidence and that showed in his swashbuckling knocks. Captain Maxwell made two scores in the 40s in the first two wins of the season but he too failed to fire in the rest of the games.
In comparison, it seems unfair to judge Eoin Morgan on his numbers as he has played just two matches, but that does not negate the fact that even he has failed to provide any support to the team. Thus, a team which has gone with four overseas batsmen for the last two games have almost nothing to show for their trust in the international stars.
The going does not get any easier for them as they will face the lethal bowling attack of Mumbai Indians on Thursday. The pace trio of Lasith Malinga, Mitchell McClenaghan and Jasprit Bumrah have impressed a lot of people with their performances and the green top at the Holkar Stadium will add more sting to their attack.
Having won four games out of five, Mumbai will hope to inflict damage on beaten Kings
RANA HAS FOUND PERFECT SUPPORT IN PANDYA BROTHERS WHO HAVE IMPRESSED WITH THEIR ALLROUND PERFORMANCES. GLENN MAXWELL ALSO CAME WITH A LOT OF CONFIDENCE AND THAT SHOWED IN HIS SWASHBUCKLING KNOCKS. CAPTAIN MAXWELL MADE TWO SCORES IN THE 40S IN THE FIRST TWO WINS BUT HE TOO FAILED.