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Focus on Hardik’s performance as MI take on Punjab Kings

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MATCH TODAY: Mumbai Indians vs punjab kings

Mullanpur, April 17: Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Mumbai Indians (MI) are set to collide in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 on Thursday, April 18, at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur.
Both teams have won two games and lost four out of the six they have played so far this season. Punjab Kings are positioned at No. 7 on the points table, while Mumbai Indians are at No. 8. Both teams are coming off losses and would be desperate to turn their campaigns around.Punjab’s two wins have come against Delhi Capitals and Gujarat Titans. They lost their last two matches by narrow margins. In their most recent encounter against Rajasthan Royals, the Kings failed to defend a 148-run target as the inaugural champions won by three wickets with one ball to spare.For Punjab, the batting department has failed to click as a unit. Jonny Bairstow was expected to play a crucial role at the top but the England wicketkeeper-batter has scored just 96 runs from six innings at an average of 16. Prabhsimran Singh has looked in good nick but he has thrown his wickets away after getting positive starts. The likes of Sam Curran and Jitesh Sharma haven’t lived up to their potential as yet. The two batting heroes for PBKS this season have been Shashank Singh and Ashutosh Sharma. The Two players have played a few vital cameos down the order.
The bowling department has fared much better compared to last season. Kagiso Rabada and Arshdeep Singh have nine wickets each after playing all six games at averages of 21.22 and 22.78 respectively. Curran has also chipped in with eight wickets from six games at 19. However, Harshal Patel’s form would be a cause of concern as he has conceded runs at an economy rate of 10.55.
Mumbai Indians lost their first three matches after Hardik Pandya took charge this season.
However, the five-time champions bounced back with consecutive wins against Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru. In their last encounter, Mumbai once again tasted defeat as they lost to arch-rivals Chennai Super Kings by 20 runs, chasing a target of 207.
Former captain Rohit Sharma is the top run-getter for Mumbai in the ongoing season. He has scored 261 runs from six matches at an average of 52.20 and a strike rate of 167.31. Ishan Kishan has also got some quick starts but he hasn’t converted too many of them. Hardik has been disappointing with both bat and ball, with some experts noting that he is playing with an injury.
Jasprit Bumrah is the leading wicket-taker for Mumbai as he has bagged 10 wickets from six matches at an average of 14.60. He has been given good support by Gerald Coetzee, who has picked up nine wickets at 25.67. However, Akash Madhwal, who was impressive with his death-over bowling last season, hasn’t been able to find his radar after picking up three wickets against Rajasthan Royals early on in the tournament. The 30-year-old has an economy rate of 10.60.
Match starts at 7.30 PM. (Agencies)

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