5 similarities between Mumbai Indians and Perth Scorchers
Mumbai Indians (MI) and Perth Scorchers are two of the most successful franchises in the history of T20 leagues. Both teams have been home to some of the greatest names in world cricket over the last decade.
The now-defunct Champions League T20 (CLT20) was a competition between the best T20 franchises in the world. During the 2013 edition of the CLT20, Mumbai battled Perth in a group-stage match, where Rohit Sharma's half-century helped MI win by six wickets. It was a lopsided encounter as Mumbai chased a 152-run target in just 13.2 overs.
However, a match between the current full-strength squads of Mumbai Indians and Perth Scorchers would be a closely contested one. The two teams have had the following five similarities in their respective journeys, which makes a future clash between them a must-see game.
#1 Mumbai Indians and Perth Scorchers have won 5 championships in their respective nation's leagues
The biggest similarity between MI and Perth Scorchers is that they have each won five trophies in their respective T20 leagues. Mumbai are five-time IPL winners, while Perth recently won their fifth BBL championship.
MI's five championship wins came in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2020. Perth won the BBL in 2013/14, 2014/15, 2016/17, 2021/22, and 2022/23.
#2 3 players are current squad members of MI and Perth Scorchers
Australian all-rounder Cameron Green is the next big thing in the cricket world. Green was a member of the Perth Scorchers team in the recently concluded BBL season. He will turn up for the Mumbai Indians in the upcoming IPL 2023 tournament.
Besides, pace bowlers Jhye Richardson and Jason Behrendorff turned up for Perth as well. They will don the blue jersey in the IPL later this year.
#3 MI and Perth Scorchers lost their first-ever matches on home ground
Mumbai Indians and Perth Scorchers are among the teams that participated in the inaugural editions of the Indian Premier League and Big Bash League, respectively.
While both sides are five-time champions now, they suffered a defeat in their first-ever match, that too on their home ground. MI lost to Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in IPL 2008 at the Wankhede Stadium, and Perth lost against Hobart Hurricanes in BBL 2011/12 at the WACA Ground.
Interestingly, neither Hobart Hurricanes nor Royal Challengers Bangalore have won a single trophy despite making it to the finals multiple times.
#4 Luke Ronchi played in the 1st match for both MI and Perth Scorchers
Both teams have been home to many common names, but the only common player in their first-ever playing XI was Luke Ronchi. The former New Zealand wicket-keeper kept the wickets for MI and Perth in their respective first matches.
He scored 13 runs off 16 balls for Perth against Hobart, whereas for MI, he aggregated eight runs off 10 balls against RCB.
#5 MI and Perth have 1 wooden spoon each
Mumbai Indians and Perth Scorchers have participated in all the seasons of their respective leagues. They have won the title five times and finished last in the points table in only one season.
MI took the wooden spoon home in 2022, while Perth ended eighth in the BBL standings of 2018/19. Notably, both teams won four out of 14 matches in the league stage and had a net run rate of -0.5 in those seasons.