In match 27 of the 2020 IPL, the second-place Mumbai Indians face the leaders of Delhi Capitals in a top-of-the-table clash that could turn out to be insane at Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu dhabi
That these two teams are ahead of a chasing group at the top of the table at this stage of the tournament would come as no surprise. By entering the tournament as favorites, MI and KKR have done enough to justify that tag in the tournament thus far.
The Capitals, under the skillful leadership of 25-year-old Shreyas Iyer, lit up the 2020 IPL with some impressive performances. Although they lost to the Sunrisers Hyderabad and were pushed to the limit by the Punjab Kings XI, DC have won the rest of their games without breaking a sweat.
With 5 wins in 6 games and a net run rate of +1,267, Iyer’s team would have been the fugitive leader in this year’s IPL, but here we are, with the Mumbai Indians on their heels.
Four wins in six games. An opening day loss to the Chennai Super Kings, and a heartbreaking loss in the Super Over at the hands of the Royal Challengers Bangalore. And yet the second best team in the tournament with relative ease.
A salient feature in both teams’ rise to the top of the table has to be the fact that neither of them seems too dependent on any one individual. Where Rohit Sharma is the only MI representative in the top 10 on the Orange Cap list, Shreyas Iyer just misses out. The two captains rank tenth and eleventh, respectively.
As for the Purple Cap roster, Kagiso Rabada is the fugitive leader, but he has the support of the likes of Anrich Nortje and Ravichandran Ashwin, among others, in the DC bowling unit.
MI’s top three paced bowlers are in the top 5 on this list, and that just goes to show the impact Jasprit Bumrah, James Pattinson and Trent Boult have had for the Mumbai team. You know they have done well when the absence of the great Lasith Malinga is hardly noticeable.
With arguably the two more balanced teams fighting in Abu Dhabi, this IM v DC match promises to be a great contest, especially with a lot at stake in terms of position at the top of the table.
IPL 2020: MI v DC match prediction
Posted Oct 11, 2020, 12:58 p.m. IST
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