Lucknow Super Giants vs Mumbai Indians, Eliminator

Mumbai Indians had to anxiously wait for the outcome of the last league match after chasing down another 200-plus total on Sunday (May 21) with relative ease. Royal Challengers Bangalore, who needed to beat MI to get rid of them, were up against a team that had already secured a spot in the first qualifying round. So MI had every one of the motivations to feel concerned. However, their playoff spot was confirmed by the end of the night.

After the SRH game, skipper Rohit Sharma said that if they don't make it, they only have themselves to blame. He was correct, in fact. MI was forced to rely on someone else to secure their qualification despite winning three of their final four games and finishing with 16 points. At this point in the competition, there is no room for such favors because that is behind them. They won't have a chance to win the championship for the sixth time if they lose on Wednesday.

The Lucknow Super Giants only played their first season here a year ago. Last time, it was RCB who dispensed with them and they would need to advance further in 2023. Given that they lost their captain, KL Rahul, at a crucial point, it is commendable that they were able to persevere in the face of intense competition from other teams. Krunal Pandya & Co. persevered, despite the fact that many people anticipated that their campaign would cease to exist. Given the expected circumstances, they will once more bet on their chances. Although LSG had a subpar home record, the team is accustomed to playing on slow surfaces.

MI, on the other hand, has been winning games this season by hitting hard. However, that batting unit did not perform well in the match at Chepauk, so they will need to learn and adapt this time. When these two teams met just a week ago, Marcus Stoinis scored a stunning goal, and Nicholas Pooran scored in their last league match. However, LSG requires contributions from that upper order.

When: LSG vs MI, Eliminator, May 24, 2023 at 19:30 IST

Where: MA Chidambaram stadium, Chennai

What to expect: A humid evening awaits the two sides. Given how the par scores dipped at Chepauk in the second half, even a score of 150 could be a match-winning one.

Team Watch

Lucknow Super Giants

MI, on the other hand, has been winning games this season by hitting hard. However, that batting unit did not perform well in the match at Chepauk, so they will need to learn and adapt this time. When these two teams met just a week ago, Marcus Stoinis scored a stunning goal, and Nicholas Pooran scored in their last league match. However, LSG requires contributions from that upper order.

Probable XI: Kyle Mayers, Quinton de Kock (WK), Prerak Mankad, Marcus Stoinis, Krunal Pandya (C), Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, K Gowtham, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohsin Khan, Yash Thakur

Strategies and Matchups: Given his remarkable record against MI's designated death bowler Chris Jordan, LSG would adore for Stoinis to bat deep once more. In just 61 balls, Stoinis has scored a mind-boggling 151 runs against Jordan. Given the success that Mishra and Bishnoi have had against Rohit, LSG would still be interested in their chances against the MI captain if he manages to get past the new ball spell.

Mumbai Indians

Hrithik Shokeen could be brought back by MI due to the LSG XI's high number of left-handed players. Tilak Varma, who was named a sub for the last game, ought to take care of business too.

Probable XI: Rohit Sharma (C), Ishan Kishan (WK), Cameron Green, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma/Vishnu Vinod, Nehal Wadhera, Tim David, Chris Jordan, Piyush Chawla, Akash Madhwal, Hrithik Shokeen

Strategies and Matchups: Suryakumar Yadav and Cameron Green will be MI's best options for countering the leggies if LSG does field both of them. The two players hit the ball close to 140 and rarely get run out by legspinners.

Squads:

Lucknow Super Giants Squad: Quinton de Kock(w), Karan Sharma, Prerak Mankad, Marcus Stoinis, Krunal Pandya(c), Ayush Badoni, Nicholas Pooran, Krishnappa Gowtham, Ravi Bishnoi, Naveen-ul-Haq, Mohsin Khan, Yash Thakur, Deepak Hooda, Kyle Mayers, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Daniel Sams, Amit Mishra, Karun Nair, Manan Vohra, Mark Wood, Avesh Khan, Swapnil Singh, Romario Shepherd, Arpit Guleria, Suryansh Shedge

Mumbai Indians Squad: Ishan Kishan(w), Rohit Sharma(c), Cameron Green, Suryakumar Yadav, Nehal Wadhera, Tim David, Chris Jordan, Piyush Chawla, Kumar Kartikeya, Jason Behrendorff, Akash Madhwal, Vishnu Vinod, Tilak Varma, Ramandeep Singh, Tristan Stubbs, Sandeep Warrier, Riley Meredith, Shams Mulani, Arjun Tendulkar, Hrithik Shokeen, Duan Jansen, Arshad Khan, Dewald Brevis, Raghav Goyal