The Hindu (Tiruchirapalli)

LSG, MI will want to mend inconsiste­nt form for a shot at playos

- Abhishek Saini

Mayank’s return brings a handy reinforcem­ent for a misfiring Super Giants pace unit.

Hanging on to its playo chances by a thread and fast running out of time, Mumbai Indians (MI) will hope its season turnaround can begin with the Indian Premier League match against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on Tuesday.

The dwindling returns from its batters, starting at the top with Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan, have been symptomati­c of its ailing season.

The opening salvo had four 50-plus stands in the side’s Šrst six games. In the three outings since, it has had none.

MI will hope Pandya’s 46 o 24 against the Capitals last week can help him turn a corner and bring some support for Tilak Varma.

With the ball, Nuwan Thushara has made an unceremoni­ous start to his IPL career, conceding at 12 runs per over. The potential return of Gerald Coetzee will ease some of Jasprit Bumrah’s burden.

These issues hold a familiar ring for the Super Giants too, who will want to mend their inconsiste­nt form before it weighs on their playo contention. On the ascendency after back-to-back wins over Chennai Super Kings, Lucknow was handed a reality check by Rajasthan Royals last week.

To begin with, Mayank Yadav’s return to Štness brings handy reinforcem­ent for a misŠring pace unit.

K.L. Rahul would want to put his spinners, Ravi Bishnoi and Krunal Pandya,

to better use. The pair has bowled a combined 50.4 overs across nine games.

Calls for improvemen­t will fall on the Lucknow batters as well, with the heavy lifting having been left for Rahul and Nicholas Pooran so far. The contributi­ons from overseas starters Quinton de Kock and Marcus Stoinis have been too far and few between.

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