Kings XI Punjab have an incredibly tough task on their hand as they face their second must-win match in a row, against table-toppers Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday.

Despite a brilliant performance against Kolkata Knight Riders who they defeated by 14 runs on Tuesday, the odds are stacked against Punjab. Mumbai have only lost once at home this season. And even if Punjab beat Mumbai, they have to beat Rising Pune Supergiant on Sunday and hope Gujarat Lions beat Sunrisers Hyderabad on Saturday.

With 18 points in 12 games and a playoff place clinched, Mumbai have no such worries but will be looking to nail a spot in the top-two and finish this season off on a high.

Time: 8 pm

Venue: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

TV: Sony Max, Sony Six, Sony ESPN and their HD Channels

Head-to-head

Played: 19

Mumbi Indians: 10

Kings XI Punjab: 9

Mumbai Indians

  • Mumbai have two matches left: this one against Punjab and then against Kolkata Knight Riders on Saturday. They have already qualified for the Playoffs but they will need another win to cement a place in the top two.
  • After a blazing beginning to the season, Nitish Rana’s form has tapered off with scores of 8, 3, 19, 27 and 9 in his last five matches.
  • Despite being top of the league, no Mumbai batsman is in the top 10 of the highest run-getters list this season. Rana, Mumbai’s highest run-scorer, troops in at the 12th spot with 321 runs in 12 matches.
  • There is some cause to cheer for the bowlers though: Mitchell McClenaghan is in the fifth spot in the highest wicket-takers list (Purple Cap) with 17 wickets in 12 matches. Jasprit Bumrah is in tenth spot with 14 wickets from 12. 

“We’ve qualified but that doesn’t stop our work”

- Rohit Sharma, Mumbai Indians captain.

Squad: Rohit Sharma (captain), Kieron Pollard, Lasith Malinga, Harbhajan Singh, Ambati Rayudu, Jasprit Bumrah, Shreyas Gopal, Lendl Simmons, Vinay Kumar, Parthiv Patel, Mitchell McClenaghan, Nitish Rana, Siddhesh Lad, Jagadeesha Suchith, Hardik Pandya, Jos Buttler, Tim Southee, Jitesh Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Deepak Punia, Saurabh Tiwary, Nicholas Pooran, Mitchell Johnson, Karn Sharma, Asela Gunaratne, Krishnappa Gowtham, Kulwant Khejroliya.

Kings XI Punjab

  • Simply put, it’s a must-win situation for Glenn Maxwell’s unit. They need to beat Mumbai on Thursday and then Rising Pune Supergiant on Sunday to stand a chance for qualifying for the playoffs. They also have to hope Sunrisers lose their last match against the Gujarat Lions.
  • Hashim Amla held the Kings XI Punjab batting unit together but his departure means other batsmen have to step up. Manan Vohra (who’s just had that 95 to his credit), Martin Guptill and Shaun Marsh have to come good against Mumbai.
  • Punjab’s spin unit of Axar Patel, Swapnil Singh and Rahul Tewatia had a successful outing against KKR on Tuesday and they could find conditions conducive in Mumbai as well. The overall economy rate of spin this season at the venue has been 6.83.

“Hopefully we can do this in the last two games and give the people of Punjab something to cheer about.”

-Glenn Maxwell, Kings XI Punjab captain, after the win against Kolkata

Kings XI Punjab squad: Glenn Maxwell (capt), David Miller, Manan Vohra, Hashim Amla, Shaun Marsh, Armaan Jaffer, Martin Guptill, Eoin Morgan, Rinku Singh, Sandeep Sharma, Arman Jaffer, Anureet Singh, Mohit Sharma, KC Cariappa, Pradeep Sahu, Swapnil Singh, T Natrajan, Matt Henry, Varun Aaron, Axar Patel, Marcus Stoinis, Gurkeerat Mann, Rahul Tewatia, Darren Sammy, Wriddhiman Saha, Nikhil Naik, Ishant Sharma.