In the 43rd match of the Indian Premier League 2024, Delhi Capitals (DC) will host five-time winners Mumbai Indians (MI) at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. Both DC and MI need a win to further boost their chances of qualifying for the playoffs this season. They sit next to each other in the points table, and a win in this game for either of these two sides can be of immense value.
Both teams are hungry for a victory, with DC looking to maintain their recent resurgence and MI aiming to climb up from their current eighth position on the points table.
DC vs MI Previous Performances.
The hosts, Delhi Capitals (DC), are enjoying a good run of form as they have won two of their last three games. The team management might have finally found the right players for the playing XI and are sticking to the winning combination more often than not. A win in this game can bump up the chances for qualification to the playoffs.
Mumbai Indians(MI) are coming into this game on the back of a disappointing performance against the Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur. They have won just three out of their eight matches so far in the Indian Premier League and are desperate for a win in this game to keep their hopes for qualification in their own hands.
DC vs MI Head to Head
MI 19 – 15 DC. Mumbai Indians have won the last three matches played between these two sides. Romario Shepherd blasted an unbeaten 39 off 10 balls, including a 32-run last over against Anrich Nortje, as Mumbai racked up 234 for 5. Tristan Stubbs also hammered an unbeaten 25-ball 71, but it came too late as DC managed only 205 in their previous encounter at Wankhede in IPL 2024.
Delhi and Mumbai have locked horns in 34 matches since their first meeting in 2008. MI have won 19 games while DC finished on the winning side 15 times. At the Arun Jaitley Stadium, the Capitals have a slender 6-5 lead over the 5-time champions. In their previous game, MI beat DC by 29 runs on April 7 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
DC vs MI Pitch Report
Unlike the pitches seen during the Women’s Premier League 2024, the batters have been dominating the play at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. Both spinners and pacers can use their variations as options in order to scalp wickets on such a surface. The last two games at this venue have been high-scoring. Expect the same for this game as well. The last afternoon match in the IPL in Delhi was between CSK and DC last year, with the former scoring 223 after batting first and then restricting the hosts to 146.
Teams have had success here batting first, including the two IPL 2024 matches played so far at this venue. An unexpected, brief but heavy spell of shower disrupted practice for a while, just like it did a day before the DC-GT game. But the forecast for the game time is bright and sunny with a high of 38 degrees Celsius.
Runs, runs and more runs have been the theme in the two games in Delhi. Teams have thrashed 57 sixes in two matches here, with scores of 200 breached three times in four innings and the lowest score standing at 199. The shorter square boundaries could bring the likes of Suryakumar, Tim David and Jake Fraser-McGurk into the picture with another high-scoring affair expected. This will, however, be the first day game in Delhi and that could mean some assistance for spinners. The temperature will be around the 38 degree mark in the day.
DC vs MI Big Picture – Pant vs Bumrah
Rishabh Pant has gone from strength to strength since his comeback to competitive cricket. After showing glimpses of his old self in earlier games, he unleashed havoc on the Gujarat Titans bowlers in Delhi Capitals’ previous outing, with 88 off 43 balls and some geometry-defying pyrotechnics.
With 342 runs in nine outings, Pant has already crossed his run-tally from the last time he played the IPL in 2022. He is comfortably DC’s highest run-getter this season and boasts a strike rate of 161.32. That strike rate goes further up to 190.55 against fast bowlers. But when Capitals face Mumbai Indians on Saturday, Pant could be in for his sternest test of IPL 2024 against old nemesis Jasprit Bumrah.
Bumrah has been in prime form this season. With 13 wickets and an economy rate of 6.37, he is the joint-highest wicket-taker and Mumbai’s best bowler. More importantly, he has a stellar record against Pant. Bumrah has dismissed Pant six times in 13 IPL innings – more than any other bowler. Pant has a strike rate of 111.6 against Bumrah and averages just 8.00.
Bumrah has an economy rate of 7.20 in the death overs in IPL 2024, better than any bowler who has bowled more than two overs. Pant, meanwhile is going at a strike rate of 260.60 this season in the last four. The two didn’t come face to face when DC met MI earlier in the competition. But if they do, it could make for an interesting battle within a battle.
MI are currently eighth on the points table with three wins in eight games. Hosts DC, who have won three of their last four outings, are sixth on eight points but have played one extra game.
DC vs MI Team news and impact player strategy
Delhi Capitals: David Warner remains unavailable due to a finger injury, while Ishant Sharma has also been ruled out of the game. Afghanistan allrounder Gulbadin Naib, who recently replaced Mitchell Marsh in the squad, is available.
DC brought in Rasikh Salam as an impact sub for Prithvi Shaw last game and are likely to go that way again. If the surface is conducive to spin, they could also get in Lalit Yadav for his offspin and batting. Nortje has been woefully out of form (economy 13.36) so DC could bring in Jhye Richardson too.
Mumbai Indians: Suryakumar Yadav is favorite to be MI’s Impact Player. They started with three overseas players in the previous game, with Nuwan Thushara coming on later. Mumbai could go with the same combination but could also be tempted to have Shepherd in given his performance in the reverse fixture.
DC vs MI In the spotlight – Kuldeep Yadav and Hardik Pandya
Kuldeep Yadav has been phenomenal this season. With 12 wickets and an economy of 7.54, he is just one away from the Purple Cap, but what’s been most impressive is his 11 wickets in the middle overs, the joint-most in that phase this season. He is also going at an economy of just 6.40 in the phase. MI’s middle order hasn’t been their strongest suit and Kuldeep could add more to his tally.
Nothing much has gone to plan for Hardik Pandya. In eight innings in IPL 2024, he has scored just 151 runs, averaging 21.57 with a strike rate of 142.25. With the ball, he has only managed four wickets going at an economy rate of 10.94. Pandya’s entry point while batting has also been a major talking point.
In MI’s previous game, he came in after a strong 99-run stand between Tilak Varma and Nehal Wadhera and sucked the momentum out of the game with a run-a-ball 10, with Tim David still waiting to bat. A strong show with both bat and ball will do Pandya’s confidence a world of good.
DC vs MI Vital stats that matter
- Pant’s 243 runs in the middle overs is the highest among all batters in IPL 2024.
- Capitals have the second-worst economy rate in the powerplay this season – 10.46.
- Rohit Sharma has 1026 runs against DC in the IPL. He needs five more to go past Virat Kohli’s record for most runs against the Delhi franchise.
- Bumrah has removed Shaw twice in 16 balls in the IPL. Shaw only strikes at 72.7 against Bumrah, while averaging 8.00. Axar Patel has fallen to Bumrah three times in 45 balls and has a strike rate of 102.2 against him.
- Rohit has been dismissed by Axar three times in 10 IPL innings and strikes at only 91.3 against him. Khaleel Ahmed has meanwhile sent back Pandya three times in 26 balls in the tournament.
DC vs MI Predicted XI
DC Predicted XI: Prithvi Shaw, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Abhishek Porel, Shai Hope, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Anrich Nortje, Khaleel Ahmed, Mukesh Kumar
Impact Player: Rasikh Dar Salam
MI Predicted XI: Ishan Kishan(w), Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya(c), Tim David, Nehal Wadhera, Mohammad Nabi, Gerald Coetzee, Piyush Chawla, Jasprit Bumrah
Impact Player: Nuwan Thushara
DC vs MI Fantasy Playing XI : Jake Fraser-McGurk, Ishan Kishan(w), Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, ,Rishabh Pant(w/c), Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Khaleel Ahmed
DC vs MI: Match Prediction
Both teams are struggling for form and are looking for consistency. Playing at home, DC can be said to have the advantage, but one cannot afford to undermine MI by any stretch of the imagination. Bearing in mind all factors, the team batting second should win.