IPL 2018, Match 55, Delhi Daredevils vs Mumbai Indians - Match Prediction

It will be a must-win encounter for the Mumbai Indians when they meet the Delhi Daredevils in the 55^th match of Vivo IPL 11.

A win will seal their place in the playoffs especially given the fact that they have a far superior net run rate than Rajasthan or Punjab. Even if Punjab win the evening encounter, they need to win by a huge margin to get ahead of Mumbai in the net run rate.

Mumbai have a made a sensational comeback in the season after losing five of their first six matches. It was a much-needed surge, and a victory on Sunday might well be yet another fairytale ending in the group stage for Mumbai. This is not the first time Mumbai has found them in this position. They will back themselves to beat the lowest ranked team in the championship, Delhi Daredevils.

The form of Kieron Pollard will be a huge boost for Mumbai ahead of the must-win clash. The big man from the Caribbean made a terrific comeback and added impetus to the MI innings against Punjab. He scored a quickfire half-century which proved to be quite decisive in the end. In the bowling department, Jasprit Bumrah was back at his lethal best.

He produced a magnificent piece of bowling and ended up with exceptional figures of 3/15 in his allotted four overs. He was handed over the two most difficult overs and he delivered in the crunch situation. Bumrah had gone for runs earlier in the competition.

However, he held his nerves and produced a breathtaking performance which might just take his side to the playoffs. However, the match today will be a make or break for Mumbai.

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The Delhi Daredevils have pride at stake. They defeated the mighty Chennai Super Kings in their previous encounter by a huge margin of 34 runs. It was a much-needed victory for Delhi, and captain Shreyas Iyer also revealed they were craving for the win. They have nothing to play for. However, Delhi can turn out to be the party poopers for Mumbai if they go on to win on Sunday.

The form of Rishabh Pant will be the biggest positive for Delhi from the tournament. The southpaw has looked in sensational touch against almost all the oppositions.

He has toyed with star-studded bowling line-ups. However, his teammates haven’t been able to provide the much-needed support on a consistent basis. Hence, Delhi finds themselves at the bottom of the points table.

Team Combinations

Delhi Daredevils

The home team has given a break to too many youngsters. The list includes the 1^st ever Nepalese to play in the IPL. Sandeep Lamichane has performed quite admirably and has bagged crucial wickets.

It was good bowling performance by DD in the previous clash. Harshal Patel put up a terrific all-round show. Hence, Delhi is unlikely to tinker with their winning combination in their last match of the campaign.

Predicted XI: Prithvi Shaw, Shreyas Iyer (c), Rishabh Pant, Glenn Maxwell, Vijay Shankar, Abhishek Sharma, Harshal Patel, Sandeep Lamichhane, Amit Mishra, Trent Boult, Avesh Khan

Mumbai Indians

The three-time champions have gone with the same combination in the last few matches. However, they gave a break to Pollard at the expense of JP Duminy which proved to be a masterstroke. He will retain his place. The rest of the team is expected to remain the same.

Predicted XI: Evin Lewis, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Rohit Sharma (c), Krunal Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Ben Cutting, Hardik Pandya, Mitchell McClenaghan, Jasprit Bumrah, Mayank Markande

Match Prediction

Mumbai will start as favourites. However, it won’t be an easy job for them especially given the fact that it is must-win encounter.

However, they don’t have to look at other calculations. A victory will automatically help them go through to the playoffs. I will go with Mumbai especially in a tough clash like this. A playoffs berth might just help them go all the way yet again.

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