IPL 2019, SRH vs MI: 2 changes that MI should make for the match
Two in-form teams, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Mumbai Indians, are set to take on each other on Saturday in Match 19 of IPL 2019. The match will be played in SRH's home ground, at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.
Both SRH and MI won their previous games against DC and CSK respectively. The SRH vs MI rivalry may not have a long history, but it has generally produced closely fought matches.
Mumbai Indians made a couple of changes to their XI when they played against CSK, and they are expected to make some changes against SRH as well. That said, with Kieron Pollard coming into form and showing just how devastating he can be against CSK, the speculations of the big West Indian being dropped have faded away.
While Mumbai Indians have great balance in their lineup and wouldn't want to fiddle with the top order, the bowling attack might need a bit of shuffling.
Keeping all that in mind, here are the two changes that MI should make for the match against SRH:
#1 Rahul Chahar out - Mayank Markande in
Mayank Markande missed the match against CSK due to illness and as his replacement, the young leg spinner Rahul Chahar was roped in. Chahar didn't get to do much, but he did bowl two economical overs for MI. With Markande expected to be fit to face SRH, this will be the most obvious change in the XI.
Also, Markande had a brilliant outing against SRH the last time MI were in Hyderabad, and the Hyderabad wicket always has something in it for the wrist spinners. Markande will be up against one of the best batting lineups so far in this year's IPL, and it will be interesting to see how the leg spinner adjusts to the conditions on offer.
#2 Lasith Malinga out - Alzarri Joseph in
This is more of a forced change as Lasith Malinga has returned to Sri Lanka to take part in the Super Provisional One Day Cup tournament, which is to serve as trial for Sri Lanka's World Cup squad.
Malinga would be dearly missed by Rohit Sharma as he has been brilliant since his return to MI. That said, there are a couple of good replacements for him in the squad.
The lanky West Indian Alzarri Joseph is one of them, and he will face some competition from Mitchell McClenaghan. However, Sharma wouldn't want to have two similar kinds of left-arm fast bowlers in his team, so the former may get the nod.
Joseph is a bowler who has tremendous pace, and he will bring something different to the MI pace battery.