Could Dhoni play against Mumbai? He’s practiced hard in the nets, and CSK expects a good performance from his batsmen.

The match will be played tomorrow between Mumbai Indians and CSK

Mumbai When the teams of former champions Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings (CSK), who have not been able to perform as expected so far, will face each other in the Indian Premier League (IPL) here on Thursday, they will try to maintain continuity in their game by keeping an eye on the possible comeback of their former captains Rohit Sharma and Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Rohit (hamstring) and Dhoni (calf strain) are on their way to a comeback, but it remains to be seen whether either of them will take the field at the Wankhede Stadium for this crucial match. Rohit did not participate in the optional practice session on Tuesday but Dhoni, who has not played a single match so far in the current tournament, practiced vigorously.

This creates a possibility of his return as an impact player. The return of these two great players is also considered important because both these teams, which have won five titles each till now, are facing many problems.

CSK expects good performance from batsmen

CSK, like every team, started the tournament looking for form and the right combination but just as they started getting into rhythm, their young batsman Ayush Mhatre was ruled out of the tournament due to a hamstring strain which is a big blow for CSK.

Due to this, CSK is having to make a new strategy in batting. Gujarat wicketkeeper-batsman Urvil Patel can be included in the team in place of Mhatre. After the defeat at the hands of Sunrisers Hyderabad, CSK will expect a good performance from all its batsmen. In the last match, its middle order batsmen could not perform well.

Disappointing performance of captain Ruturaj

Sarfaraz Khan has scored 147 runs so far but he has not been able to convert a good start into a big innings yet, especially when captain Ruturaj Gaikwad has had a disappointing performance by scoring just 82 runs.

Similarly, a lot will also depend on Sanju Samson (192 runs). He had performed brilliantly in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup on this very ground. CSK will be desperate to break the losing streak in two consecutive matches. He will try to take inspiration from his recent record against Mumbai. It has won four out of the last five matches between these two teams. Both teams currently have four points each. Mumbai is ahead of CSK due to better net run rate.

Surya and Hardik’s form becomes a concern

Tilak Verma’s brilliant performance in Ahmedabad helped Mumbai Indians break the losing streak of four consecutive matches, but the road is still not easy for them.

The biggest concern for Mumbai is the form of India’s T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav and the captain of this franchise team Hardik Pandya. Suryakumar has managed to score only one half-century so far while Hardik has failed to take over the innings when needed or to bat brilliantly at the end. The team has expressed confidence in Naman Dheer and he has lived up to it so far.

Ashwani allayed the team’s worries

Jasprit Bumrah finally managed to take a wicket in the last match while Ashwani Kumar’s four wickets eased the team’s worries as none of Trent Boult, Deepak Chahar and Hardik were able to provide consistent success in the beginning. Mumbai Indians’ England all-rounder Will Jacques has joined the team and his return will strengthen the team.

end-of