Time: September 28, 7:30 PM IST
Venue: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai
Pitch report
The average first and second innings scores at Dubai read 175 and 138 respectively. The pitch gets slower in the second innings and hence no team has chased down a target successfully in four matches. Make sure you pack your fantasy teams with most batsmen from the team batting first.
Power players
AB de Villiers fancies hitting runs against Mumbai: his scores read 75 off 51 and 70 off 41 last season. He already has a fifty in two matches in the ongoing edition, looking solid as ever.
Although Rohit Sharma seems to have put on some weight in the lockdown, his batting has not changed whatsoever. He is the same six-hitting, breathtaking batsman he is reputed for. In the scorching heat of Abu Dhabi, he stayed at the crease and dealt in boundaries: 48 of his 80 runs came in fours and sixes.
Virat Kohli was uncharacteristic against Delhi. By his standards, the two catches that he dropped were easy. Maybe the floodlights made it difficult for him to sight the ball. That said, he is a champion cricketer and will rise above difficulties in no time, that tough times only make him mightier.
Had Yuzvendra Chahal not been a part of Bangalore’s squad, they would have further stared down the barrel. He not only takes wickets but also keeps the runs flow in check, eventually putting batsmen under pressure. He has taken 4 wickets, giving away only 5.3 runs per over.
Smart picks
Jasprit Bumrah seems to have found his lost mojo. He took 2 for 7 in 3 overs before Pat Cummins slogged four sixes off his last over. However, Bumrah had already put his team on top before the counterattack.
Aaron Finch has had starts in both matches but could not convert them into big scores. However, with the pitches getting better for the batsmen, he will find his feet soon. It won’t be too long until he reduces the bowlers to a punching bag.
Suryakumar Yadav is more than what he perceived for in the Indian T20 League. He was the second-highest run-scorer – even ahead of Rohit Sharma – in the previous season, and will play a crucial role in Mumbai’s journey this year. It was he who launched an onslaught first, taking pressure off Rohit against Kolkata last week. He scored 47 off 28. His selection percentage has been on the higher side of late in fantasy sports.
Trent Boult and James Pattinson have been disciplined with the new ball, making early inroads and keeping Mumbai ahead in the race. Both have taken 6 wickets between them and have conceded below 7 RPO.
Probable XIs
Bangalore: Devdutt Padikkal, Aaron Finch, Virat Kohli (c), AB de Villiers, Josh Philippe (wk)/Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Dale Steyn/Chris Morris , Umesh Yadav, Navdeep Saini, Yuzvendra Chahal
Mumbai: Rohit Sharma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Saurabh Tiwary, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, James Pattinson, Rahul Chahar, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah