Current Standings:
- Both teams are at the bottom of the table (7th & 8th) with 4 points each after 6 games.
Recent Form:
- Both lost their last matches, with MI losing despite Rohit Sharma’s century.
Key Players:
- Punjab Kings: Kagiso Rabada (pace bowling), Shashank Singh & Ashutosh Sharma (lower-order batting)
- Mumbai Indians: Jasprit Bumrah (pace bowling), Rohit Sharma & Ishan Kishan (opening batting)
Matchup Points:
- Venue: Mullanpur (lowest scoring venue in PowerPlays this season)
- Advantage: Pacers might be more effective due to helpful conditions.
- Head-to-Head: Mumbai leads with a slight edge (16-15 in 31 matches).
Team News:
- Punjab Kings: Shikhar Dhawan injured, Jitesh Sharma might play despite a knock.
- Mumbai Indians: No injuries reported.
Tactics:
- Punjab might target Hardik Pandya with their finishers.
- Mumbai needs to be cautious of Rabada, especially for Suryakumar Yadav.
Possible Playing XIs:
- Punjab Kings: Bairstow, Taide, Curran (c), Livingstone, Jitesh (wk), Shashank, Ashutosh, Brar, Patel, Arshdeep, Rabada (Impact sub: Prabhsimran/Chahar)
- Mumbai Indians: Rohit, Ishan (wk), Varma, Hardik (c), David, Nabi, Shepherd, Gopal, Coetzee, Bumrah, Madhwal (Impact sub: Surya)
Interesting Facts:
- Rohit Sharma to play his 250th IPL match (only after MS Dhoni).
- MI lost both away games this season.
- Punjab made the fewest changes in the league (4 in 6 matches).
- Suryakumar Yadav struggles in away matches, but did well against PBKS last year.
