IPL 2018, DD V MI: 5 player battles to look forward to
While the hosts Delhi Daredevils will be trying to end their campaign on a high, it is a do-or-die game for defending champions Mumbai Indians. If MI lose then they are out of the tournament and with only 1 spot left to be decided for the playoffs, a win for the Rohit Sharma-led side will be enough to take them through. MI are known to thrive on such occasions and they would go into today’s game as the favourites.
DD are coming off an excellent win against the Chennai Super Kings in their previous game and would like to sign off from the tournament by being the party poopers. The players from both sides will be involved in an intense battle this afternoon in Delhi and the game will witness some tremendous battles that will have a big impact on the ultimate result of the game.
Here is a look at 5 of the most important battles.
#5 Shreyas Iyer v Jasprit Bumrah
After running into some fine form following his elevation to the captaincy, Shreyas Iyer has not really delivered in the last three games and in DD’s last game this season, the captain would definitely like to sign off on a high. Despite all that, Iyer is still DD’s 2nd highest (albeit a distant 2nd) run-scorer with an aggregate of 405 runs. He is averaging 40.50 and striking at 135. In this afternoon’s game, it is his battle with MI’s Jasprit Bumrah that promises to be a very interesting one.
If he comes in to bat early on or if he lasts till the end overs, then he would definitely run into the India fast bowler, who has come back into form after an indifferent start to the tournament. In 13 games so far, Bumrah has taken 16 wickets and has recorded an excellent economy rate of only 6.86 per over. It would be quite interesting to see how Iyer handles him and it is a battle that is going to have a big influence on the game.