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After 50 days of exciting and entertaining cricket action, its now time for the final thriller. Defending champions Chennai Super Kings are ready to face Mumbai Indians at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad for IPL 2019 trophy.
With 3 IPL titles each, both teams are considered to be the most successful franchises in the tournament.
Previously, the two teams have faced each other 3 times this season with Mumbai Indians defeating Chennai Super Kings every time. Given CSK’s earlier performances against MI, they would certainly be under pressure in the finals. But it’s the captain cool, MS Dhoni who holds the key and can lead his side to their 4th IPL championship. For this reason, major online betting sites still consider Chennai Super Kings as the favorites for the final game.
Pitch:
Hyderabad’s wicket is considered good for batting, so we can expect a high scoring match. With low humidity and no rain forecast, it would be a great day for cricket.
Mumbai Indians Preview:
The Mumbai Indians squad started their campaign slowly but finished the league stage at the top of the IPL Points Table. The players are in full form with Quinton de Kock, Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav providing strength to the top order.
Ishan Kishan, who has been included in the team in the last two games, looks in good touch. The Pandya brothers are in superb form, both with the bat and with the bowl.
Spinner Rahul Chahar has been magical and there is no reason to doubt Jasprit Bumrah and Lasith Malinga in death overs. The management might look to replace Jayant Yadav with pacer Mitchell McClenaghan.
Overall, the Mumbai Indians side looks much stronger than their opponent, Chennai Super Kings.
Probable XI: Quinton de Kock, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Krunal Pandya, Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Rahul Chahar, Mitchell McClenaghan, Lasith Malinga, Jasprit Bumrah
Chennai Super Kings Preview:
As we have seen throughout the tournament, Chennai Super Kings don’t believe in making big changes to their squad. But given Hyderabad’s pitch, they might want to go with an extra batsman in form of Murali Vijay.
Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis looked good in the ‘Qualifier 2‘, and their opening partnership would be important for the team. Both Raina and Rayudu had an on and off-season so far, but they need to push up their game for the finals. Dhoni’s form has been phenomenal and the franchise would want him to finish the game for the team.
Harbhajan Singh and Imran Tahir have been outstanding and would likely be the game changers of the match.
Probable XI: Shane Watson, Faf du Plessis, Suresh Raina, Murali Vijay, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo, Harbhajan Singh, Imran Tahir, Deepak Chahar
