Onus on bowlers

SRH-MI showdown

Hyderabad: Defending champion Mumbai Indians (MI) might still be in a state of stupor following the loss to debutant Gujarat Lions but they have enough ammunition in their repertoire to fire them back to their winnings ways.

This resilience and their ability to spring to life could possibly be something that Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will be dreading when the two face-off for their IPL showdown at Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium (RGICS) here on Monday.

On current form, Mumbai will begin with the edge considering that the players are gradually peaking into top form. Hyderabad players have displayed nothing significant, barring the odd individual showing, to give the fans anything cheer about.

However, what should gladden the SRH think tank is that apart from Rohit Sharma’s fine knock and Jos Buttler's splendid cameo, Mumbai Indians have also suffered two losses in the tournament.

Like SRH even they have match-winners in the injured list. The visiting team’s batting has been a major letdown as has been the case with the host, particularly that of Shikar Dhawan and David Warner.

Sharma can be destructive and take the match away from the opposition camp but he has not found any substantial support at the other end, although it boasts of an enviable line-up like Kieron Pollard, AT Rayudu, Hardik Pandya and Martin Guptil, who has replaced the injured Lendl Simmons.

Hyderabad has to worry that nothing has gone right for them in the first two outings. Warner, Eoin Morgan and Naman Ojha have innings to stand in their credit, which is not exactly a winning recipe. Mitchell McCleanghan fully capitalised on the situation in the absence of Mumbai’s proven match-winner Lasith Malinga.

He impressed with his four-wicket haul against Gujarat Lions. He is supported by Tim Southee and Jasprith Bumrah. The spin department is heavily dependent on Harbhajan Singh, who has been a pale shadow of his former self.

Hyderabad can fancy its chances if its bowlers can take psychological advantage of repeated failures of Mumbai batsmen. Unfortunately, experience swing bowler Bhuveshwar Kumar has not been impressive in both the matches while Barinder Saran looks pedestrian by any standards.

Meanwhile, Mumbai Indians may have courted an avoidable controversy because of the overenthusiastic zest of Malinga, Rubbing the shoulders of the national board is one thing and quite another to bypass its order.

Malinga is likely to pay a heavy price by making himself available for the champions despite not being cleared by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC). Mumbai Indians may be asked to explain how the bowler was allowed to participate in the team's training session in the first place.

This is despite Malinga being ruled out for the entire ninth edition. Coming to the match, the team batting second could have the advantage.