02 May,2019 07:32 AM IST | Mumbai | Subodh Mayure
MI's Kieron Pollard (right) with teammate Hardik Pandya during a training session at Wankhede Stadium yesterday. Pic/Atul Kamble
Mumbai Indians (MI) are just a win away from securing their Indian Premier League-12 playoffs berth. If the Rohit Sharma-led hosts triumph over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at Wankhede Stadium tonight, MI will be the third team after Delhi Capitals and Chennai Super Kings to seal that important slot. However, SRH find themselves in a tricky situation in a must-win game - their in-form batsman David Warner is back in Australia with the World Cup-bound team.
Without the left-handed dasher, who has scored 692 runs in 12 games this season, it appears that MI already have the upper hand, but all-rounder Kieron Pollard stressed that his team will take no chances. SRH captain Kane Williamson, Vijay Shankar, Manish Pandey, Deepak Hooda and Wriddhiman Saha will have to play major roles if the hosts are to be conquered today.
"It's obviously an advantage. David [Warner] is a world-class player. He has shown what he can do and was an integral part of Sunrisers Hyderabad. So, as an opponent, we feel good about his absence but having said that, I am sure they have in their armoury a lot of world-class talent to back it up. There is [Martin] Guptill and he has done fantastically well on the international scene. So we are not going to take them lightly. They are a great bunch of guys, they are playing good and consistent cricket," Pollard said at the pre-match press conference yesterday.
The SRH bowling unit comprising Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, Rashid Khan and Sandeep Sharma have a task on their hands to stop hard-hitter Hardik Pandya. Pollard spoke highly of Hardik, who smashed a 34-ball 91 against Kolkata Knight Riders in MI's 34-run defeat last Tuesday. "He is a small guy, but hits it a long way. And once he continues to practice and evolve as a cricketer, you will see him doing great things not only for Mumbai Indians, but by extension Indian cricket.
It's a matter of him having the confidence and you giving him the confidence for him to believe in himself, because he is one of those guys who is free-spirited and just goes out and tries to use his youthful exuberance to have an impact on the game," Pollard added. Pollard wants his team to forget about the past [earlier 12 games] and play the next two matches with a calm approach.
Focus on future
"You want to just be calm and collected. It is just like going into semi-finals and finals. You prepare mentally and physically, have plans and try to execute them. Nothing has changed in our camp. We are going through the same sort of process that we have been doing the entire season. The guys are calm and looking forward to the challenge. We know it's the business end of the tournament and the past 12 games don't matter now."
Sunrisers' opener David Warner
Though Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) head coach Tom Moody underlined the importance of a player like David Warner and his contribution to the team, the former Australian all-rounder recalled how SRH ended the IPL-11 as the runners up without having Warner in the team. Moody said: "The bottom line from our point of view is how it affects the team and that it creates an opportunity. We were faced with the same situation last season. We did not have Warner. We played the final. Okay, we did not win the final, but we had a good tournament and we ended up on top of the table. Good sides adapt and when openings or opportunity present themselves, others take those chances."
Also Read: IPL 2019: Not thinking of playoffs, focussing on next 2 games, says Krunal Pandya
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