MI vs CSK
Equally matched competition invites fierce rivalries is what makes IPL the most exciting T20 league in the world. One of the most famous rivalries is between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings. This rivalry has prospered into a big-ticket event itself in the T20 extravaganza.
MI vs CSK Head to head
The two sides have met a total of 28 times in the IPL over the years with Mumbai winning 17 of those matches and Chennai claiming the prize on 11 occasions. So far, Mumbai Indians enjoy a convincing upper hand over their arch rivals. Even on the big nights of the finals, Mumbai Indians have come out on top with 3 victories against Chennai in the IPL finals. On the other hand, CSK have managed to beat MI in the 2010 IPL final.
Last meetings
If we talk about IPL 2019, Mumbai Indians maintained a strong hold over Chennai Super Kings right through the season. MI played their key match-ups brilliantly and beat CSK on all 4 occasion including the knock-outs to conquer the trophy.
In the first CSK vs MI 2019 meeting at Wankhede stadium, the home team posted a competitive 170 batting first with the help of Suryakumar Yadav and Pandya brothers. Hardik Pandya was particularly menacing with his cameo at the end and 3 wickets with the ball. CSK only managed to get 133 and Hardik Pandya was named `Man of the Match`.
In the return leg, Mumbai Indians worked their way through to a formidable 155 on the sluggish Chepauk deck thanks to Rohit Sharma`s 67. In answer, CSK were never really in the game and lost wickets regularly with the stranglehold of Lasith Malinga and the spinners. Malinga ended up picking 4 scalps in the game.
In the first Qualifier, CSK tried to reverse the pattern and decided to bat first after winning the toss at Chennai. But somehow CSK batsmen failed to get used to the pace of their home pitch. Only Ambati Rayudu and MS Dhoni offered some resistance to MI spin trio that included Rahul Chahar, Krunal Pandya and Jayant Yadav. Chasing 132 for a place in the final, Suryakumar Yadav made the light work with a blistering 71 not out and MI sailed through to the final in some style.
In the grand CSK vs MI final at Rajiv Gandhi stadium in Hyderabad, Mumbai won the toss and elected to bat first. Although they struggled all the way through but managed to put 149 runs on the board mainly because of Kieron Pollard`s quick-fire 41 in the end. In the chase, only Shane Watson fought single-handedly but CSK fell short by just one run in a nail-biting climax. Lasith Malinga was the hero for MI with a superb last over with the ball.
Who are MI top batsmen?
Mumbai Indians’ batting lineup is their strongest forte and main reason behind their success in the recent years. And when it comes to the crucial matches against Chennai Super Kings, they don’t disappoint their fans either. Rohit Sharma leads the chart with 614 runs in 21 outings against CSK. He is followed by the MI veteran Kieron Pollard who has scored 449 runs in 19 innings including some of the high-pressure knocks. Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya conclude the list with 232 and 134 runs respectively. Suryakumar Yadav has the most impressive average of 58 from the list.
In the list of top run-scorers in home matches, top 3 remains the same with Krunal Pandya being at the fourth spot. At away and neutral venues, the same list of players (Rohit Sharma, Kieron Pollard, Suryakumar Yadav & Hardik Pandya) have kept the scoreboard ticking all along. Hardik pandya and Kieron Pollard have the most impressive strike-rates from the list thanks to their death overs heroics.
Who are CSK top batsmen?
Chennai Super Kings have always maintained the core of their squad intact all these years. Their batsmen have tons of experience playing in high pressure situations. If we talk about best performers in the matches against Mumbai Indians, then usual suspects of Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni, Dwayne Bravo and Murali Vijay take the ground comfortably.
Suresh Raina has batted in all the games against MI and he has made 704 runs in 28 innings at an average of 32. MS Dhoni has a total 570 runs in 24 opportunities he got while Dwayne Bravo and Murli vijay round off the Top 4 list with 279 and 216 runs respectively. Suresh Raina has the better strike rate of 143.38 from the list.
If we talk about performances at home games, MS Dhoni has performed slightly better than the rest of the pack while Suresh Raina has a better record at Wankhede stadium. Pace and bounce of red soil at Wankhede assist the stroke-making of Suresh Raina.
Who are MI top bowlers?
Lasith Malinga is one of the all-time great players for Mumbai Indians if not the greatest. He has performed many roles over the years for the franchise. He also leads the pack comfortably when it comes to the wicket takers list in the matches against Chennai Super Kings. Lasith Malinga has taken 31 wickets in 21 games with a 4 wicket haul. He is followed by Pandya brothers and Jasprit Bumrah but with a significance difference in the number of wickets taken.
Lasith Malinga is at the top of every list in CSK vs MI match-up. Young Mayank Markande and lanky Mitch McClenaghan have done well in home conditions at Wankhede especially in the 2018 season. In the away list, Krunal Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah and Rahul Chahar have been eye-catching with 3, 2 and 2 wickets respectively. Mitch McCleanaghan has been particularly dominant at neutral venues with 5 of his 8 wickets against CSK coming at those venues.
Who are CSK top bowlers?
If we talk about the bowlers from yellow brigade in MI vs CSK ties, Dwayne Bravo is the front runner with 25 wickets in 17 innings. He is followed by Mohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja and Deepak Chahar with 15, 13 and 7 wickets in that order. Dwayne Bravo has also taken a four-wicket haul in a single innings. Interestingly, Dwayne Bravo had started his IPL journey with Mumbai Indians in 2008.
Because of the nature of the pitch at Chepauk, Spinners dominate the list for home conditions. Imran Tahir, Mitch Santner and Harbhajan Singh are part of Top 4 along with Deepak Chahar. Also this list of home wicket-takers is of very small sample size for current players as Chepauk has hosted only one full season in last 5 years.
Dwayne Bravo has taken most of his wickets at Wankhede stadium and neutral venues with his impressive death bowling capabilities. Deepak Chahar, Imran Tahir and Shardul Thakur are part of top performers at neutral venues.