IPL 2019, Match 15, MI vs CSK: Key overseas players from the two teams
The 15th match of IPL 2019 will be played at Wankhede Stadium Mumbai on April 3 at 8 PM IST, between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings.
Both of these teams have won the IPL title thrice, making them the most successful franchises in the league. But the head-to-head stats give MI a slight edge over CSK. Out of the 26 matches played between these two teams, MI have won 14 and CSK have won the remaining 12.
CSK are currently at the top of the IPL points table, having won all the three matches they have played so far. On the other hand, MI have won one match and lost two, and are placed at the 6th position on the table.
MI will have the home advantage today, but the clear difference between the two teams lies in the MS Dhoni factor. In addition, CSK appear to have more balance in the team, particularly in their middle order.
On that note, let’s have a look at one key overseas player from each team who could have a significant impact on today's match.
Mumbai Indians - Lasith Malinga
Lasith Malinga came into IPL 2019 on the back of an ordinary performance in the ODI and T20 series against South Africa. But over the years he has done his job reasonably well for MI. He has 154 IPL wickets from 112 matches and has an economy rate of 6.92.
This season he has played two matches but failed to make any impact so far. His combined figures read 7-0-71-0.
MI would expect him to start picking wickets in the upcoming matches and take MI forward in the tournament.
Chennai Super Kings - Imran Tahir
Imran Tahir is riding high on the confidence he gained from the ODI series against Sri Lanka, in which he picked 9 wickets from 4 matches. He has 59 IPL wickets from 41 matches, which suggests he knows his way around the league too.
This season, Tahir is currently leading the bowling charts for CSK. He has picked six wickets from three matches so far at an average of 8.66. He also has an excellent economy rate of 5.20.
CSK use Tahir in the middle overs, and he has done his job extremely well so far. It will be interesting to see whether he will be able to come up with a similar performance against the powerful MI batting line-up.