11 months ago
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The Eliminator of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 will feature a clash between the five-time champions Mumbai Indians and the Krunal Pandya-led Lucknow Super Giants at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Wednesday, May 24.
Despite a rocky start to the competition, Mumbai Indians were quick to pick up the pace, heavily improved upon their form, and ultimately made their way into the knockout stages of the tournament. However, the five-time champions now face a tough clash against Lucknow Super Giants.
Previewing the game, former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra came forward to opine that despite Mumbai being the favourites in the game, the surface at the MA Chidambaram Stadium could cause trouble for the five-time champions.
"If you do man-to-man marking, you will say the scale is massively tilted towards Mumbai if the match is played anywhere other than Chennai and Ekana for the simple reason that Mumbai have the batting might. If the ball sticks slightly on the pitch, this team will get stuck," Aakash Chopra said in a video on his YouTube channel.
Mumbai's biggest problem is not from Lucknow: Chopra
Furthermore, Aakash Chopra also reflected on the fact that, despite having big hitters in the lineup, the biggest problem for Mumbai could be the pitch in Chennai.
"It is a solid batting lineup: Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Cameron Green, Suryakumar Yadav, Nehal Wadhera/Tilak Varma and then comes Tim David. They hit a lot. They concede 200 runs but score them as well every time. Mumbai's biggest problem is not from Lucknow but from the pitch," Aakash Chopra said.
Mumbai would be keen on winning the eliminator and the second qualifier to inch even closer to becoming six-time champions. On the other hand, the Krunal Pandya-led Lucknow Super Giants would be keen on making their way onto the IPL Winner List as well. It is also worth noting that the winner of the Eliminator will make their way into the second qualifier, where they take on Gujarat Titans on May 26.
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