Defending champions Mumbai Indians (MI) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK), the two most successful Indian Premier League franchises (in terms of titles won), will lock horns with each other in the first match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021`s second leg in Dubai on Sunday. While CSK are second on the points table with five wins from seven matches - 10 points - MI are fourth with four wins -- eight points -- from seven games.
What makes this game special is the fact that two of the most popular Indian cricketers and successful IPL skippers – Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni – would be leading their respective sides. Under the captaincy of Rohit, Mumbai Indians won IPL five times in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2020 while MS Dhoni led Chennai Super Kings to the championship in 2009, 2010, and 2018.
The CSK vs MI clash is also called the El-Classico of IPL and it is nothing less than the battle of supremacy.
As both sides eye a winning start in phase 2 of IPL 2021, one thing is for certain – no team will spare an inch. However, when it comes to a head-to-head basis in IPL, Mumbai has a good advantage. They have got the better of CSK on 19 occasions, while the Dhoni-led side has emerged victorious 12 times.
In the last six matches, the reigning champions Mumbai have triumphed on five occasions. The last match between the two teams was a high-scoring encounter, Kieron Pollard played a majestic knock of unbeaten 87 off 34 deliveries and helped MI chase down the massive target in a high-scoring last-ball thriller in Delhi.
Take a look at important stats ahead of the much-anticipated clash between CSK and MI:
CSK vs MI – All key stats
Matches played – 33
MI won – 20
CSK won – 13
Highest Score by MI – 219
Highest Score by CSK – 218
Lowest Score by MI – 141
Lowest Score by CSK – 79
CSK vs MI – Last 10 matches
MI, CSK, MI, MI, MI, MI, MI, CSK, MI, CSK
What happened when both the teams earlier met in Dubai?
Only one match has been played between these two sides in Dubai. CSK won that game. In UAE as well CSK dominate the rivalry as they have won two games out of three against MI.
Probable XI:
CSK Predicted XI: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Robin Uthappa, Moeen Ali, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (c & wk), Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar, Lungi Ngidi, J Hazlewood
MI Predicted XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, K Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Nathan Coulter-Nile/Jayant Yadav, Rahul Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult
IPL 2021 CSK vs MI: Check head-to-head, predicted XI and other important stats
