MUMBAI VS PUNE MAHAYUDH

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MUMBAI INDIANS WILL BE WARY OF THE CHALLENGE POSED BY RISING PUNE SUPERGIANT WHEN THE TWO MAHARASHTRA CITIES LOCK HORNS IN WHAT PROMISES TO BE A PULSATING FINAL OF THE 10TH EDITION OF THE CASH-RICH IPL TODAY ON PAPER, Pune have the upper hand, considering that the Steve Smith-led side defeated Mumbai thrice in this season

BUT MUMBAI, having reached IPL final on three earlier occasions, can take a cue from their past 2013 and 2015 performances

GOING INTO the final, Mumbai will have their tails up after their comprehensive six-wicket win against Kolkata Knight Riders in the second qualifier at Bengaluru on Friday

SKIPPER ROHIT Sharma has the luxury of great batting depth in the side. When Englishman Jos Buttler left for national duty, Mumbai got the hard-hitting West Indian Lendl Simmons as the opening partner with stumper Parthiv Patel

THE PANDYA brothers — Krunal and Hardik — provide the all-round balance while West Indian Keiron Pollard has also been amongst the runs, as is Rohit of late

WITH SRI LANKAN Lasith Malinga and Bumrah in their side, Mumbai can boast of the best death bowlers in IPL

ON THE other hand, Supergiant won't be getting an extension as per current rules, and will be aiming to end their association with the IPL with a silverware

IN THE batting department, Pune will be banking on opener Rahul

Tripathi (388 runs), who is the find of the season, along side Ajinkya Rahane SMITH HAS also been in great touch while Manoj Tiwary has redeemed himself with some vital contributions. Along with the world's best finisher — Dhoni — Tiwary took away the game from Mumbai’s grasp, milking 41 runs from last 2 overs during first qualifier at Wankhede ON THE bowling front, Pune weren't troubled despite losing star all-rounder Ben Stokes and Imran Tahir due to their national commitments for the upcoming Champions Trophy YOUNG OFF-SPINNER Washington Sundar proved his mettle against a top class Mumbai line-up while the pace duo of Jaydev Unadkat and Shardul Thakur have come of age in the business end of the tournament BILLED AS Maharashtra Derby, the summit clash is set to be a bit more than an inter-city battle