Toppers Mumbai Indians clash with Delhi Capitals in Sunday derby (IPL Match Preview 27)

Abu Dhabi : The evening IPL match of Sunday promises to be a spicy affair as two of the most consistent teams so far — Mumbai Indians (MI) and Delhi Capitals (DC) — will square-off at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium here.On paper, both sides have a top-class opening pair along with a solid middle-order and some explosive power-hitters down the order. The two bowling attacks, too, look quite similar with each team boasting some lethal pacers who have hogged the limelight with their continuous brilliant efforts.With the two sides looking in fine touch in this edition, it will be a battle of equals on Sunday evening. While DC are sitting atop the table with 10 points, four-time champions MI are at the second place with eight points.DC opener Prithvi Shaw looks in fine form while his partner Shikhar Dhawan has been successful in handing good starts, but the latter needs to convert his starts into big scores.In the middle-order, skipper Shreyas Iyer has led from the front while Rishabh Pant has also rescued his side with his lusty blows.
Meanwhile, out-of-form Shimron Hetmyer, too, regained his touch against Rajasthan Royals on Friday but the trio must need to be watchful against MI bowlers, who have been up to their best.Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje will once again lead the pace attack while Ravichandran Ashwin’s vast experience will come into play against one of the top-contenders of this year’s title.On the other side, the MI top-order comprising skipper Rohit Sharma, Quinton de Kock and Suryakumar Yadav have been amongst runs and have the back up of Ishan Kishan, who looks in sublime form.Krunal Pandya, Hardik Pandya and Keiron Pollard will be aiming for some explosive shots down the order and the trio has been equally good with their fielding efforts.The bowling attack will be led by Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult, and James Pattinson, who all have the capability to trouble even the best batters in business.Their spin attack, however, looks a bit inexperienced against Delhi. Rahul Chahar and Krunal are capable of getting breakthroughs but the duo would do well to learn as much as possible from Ashwin.Despite the boundaries being bigger than the other two venues in use, a run-feast is a possibility on Sunday evening when the two top teams of the season square-off in an intense battle for supremacy.
Squads:
Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Aditya Tare, Anmolpreet Singh, Anukul Roy, Chris Lynn, Dhawal Kulkarni, Digvijay Deshmukh, Hardik Pandya, Ishan Kishan, James Pattison, Jasprit Bumrah, Jayant Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Mitchell McClenaghan, Mohsin Khan, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Prince Balwant Rai, Quinton de Kock (w-k), Rahul Chahar, Saurabh Tiwary, Sherfane Rutherford, Suryakumar Yadav, Trent Boult
Delhi Capitals: Shreyas Iyer (Captain), Ravichandran Ashwin, Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, Shimron Hetmyer, Kagiso Rabada, Ajinkya Rahane, Amit Mishra, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishant Sharma, Axar Patel, Sandeep Lamichhane, Keemo Paul, Daniel Sams, Mohit Sharma, Anrich Nortje, Alex Carey (w-k), Avesh Khan, Tushar Deshpande, Harshal Patel, Marcus Stoinis, Lalit Yadav