Mumbai Indians to lock horns against T&T Saturday

New Delhi, Oct 4 (IANS) Two evenly matched teams – Mumbai Indians and Trinidad & Tobago – will lock horns at the Ferozeshah Kotla here Saturday for a place in the final of the Champions League Twenty20.

Both the sides earlier looked unsure of making their way into the semis but powered their way through in the respective last group matches Wednesday to grab a place for the second semifinal.

Mumbai’s batting looks solid with their top order, led by skipper Rohit Sharma, performing regularly. Sachin Tendulkar‘s form might be a worry but head coach John Wright refuted any ideas about him not being in touch.

“It is an important game for us and everyone will do what they are supposed to. Our performance in the last match was brilliant with some outstanding batting. Rohit has fitted in quickly and has done well too. We have a good batting line-up and our players are also outstanding players of spin,” said Wright Friday ahead of the semifinal.

Asked about the team’s sloppy fielding in the ongoing event, he said: “We have to improve our performance in fielding but every cricketing side have their ups and downs.”

Trinidad and Tobago on the other hand cannot be taken lightly after their thumping eight wicket win over two-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Chennai Super Kings here Wednesday to go top of Group A.

“CSK is a big, big team. We take that confidence into the next game. You have guys like M.S. Dhoni. This was the worst defeat for them in Champions League. It’s a big achievement for us,” said Trinidad and Tobago’s coach David Williams.

“We are always a team that played well together. Many did not believe that we will finish on top of the group but that’s what we did. The guys played tremendous cricket and we are just one game away from the final.”

The Caribbean side’s top order has been in excellent form with Evin Lewis, Darren Bravo and Lendl Simmons coming good just when the doctor ordered with all of them getting half-centuries in at least one of the last three innings.

However, Williams said that mystery spinner Sunil Narine will be their key.

“Sunil’s four overs are very crucial and that puts a lot of pressure on the batting team. When the other team knows they have to face three-four overs of Sunil, they try to take advantage of other bowlers. In the process, they lose their wickets and put a lot of pressure on themselves,” added Williams after the Caribbean side’s practice session at the Kotla.

Whichever side wins, it will enter the final Sunday where they will take on the winner of the first semifinal Friday between Rajasthan Royals and 2010 edition champions Chennai Super Kings here.