Two teams with contrasting fortunes in the 2021 Indian T20 League meet for the second time as Kane Williamson’s Team Hyderabad play host to the defending champions, Team Mumbai, on Tuesday, April 4, at Delhi’s Arun Jaitley Stadium.
Mumbai produced a scintillating display the last time they were on the field, beating Team Chennai on the very last ball of the match courtesy of Kieron Pollard’s match-winning knock of 87 off 34 balls. On the other hand, Hyderabad is coming on the back of yet another defeat, this time against Rajasthan.
| Hyderabad vs Mumbai head-to-head | ||
| Hyderabad | Metrics | Mumbai |
| 17 | Matches | 17 |
| 8 | Wins | 9 |
| 47.06% | Win % | 52.94% |
Hyderabad desperately needs a win as they look to make a late surge to finish inside the top four. A game against Mumbai, however, isn’t helping their cause in any way. Now, their head-to-head record against the defending champions may very well be a close call, 9-8 in favour of Mumbai, but their current form and recent results against them say something else. Hyderabad have won just one of their last five matches against Mumbai.
Hyderabad’s form in Delhi, though, is something that Kane Williamson and Co. will want to build on. In a total of 10 games played at the venue, Hyderabad have won six matches. Mumbai, on the other hand, have won six of the 13 matches played there.
| Best batters for Hyderabad vs Mumbai | |||||||
| Batsman | Matches | Runs | High score | Average | Strike rate | 100s | 50s |
| Manish Pandey | 20 | 580 | 81* | 34.11 | 127.19 | 0 | 5 |
| Kieron Pollard | 16 | 418 | 78 | 46.44 | 148.22 | 0 | 2 |
With David Warner likely to miss out on the playing XI, Hyderabad are certain to count on Manish Pandey, who has scored 580 runs in 19 innings against Mumbai, hitting at a strike rate of 127.19. This includes five half-centuries. On the other hand, Mumbai will place their hopes on all-rounder Kieron Pollard to continue enjoying his rich run of form. It was the big West Indian who made the difference the last time these two teams met. The all-rounder conceded 10 runs in his two overs and scored an unbeaten 35 off 22 balls.
| Best bowlers for Hyderabad vs Mumbai | |||||
| Bowler | Innings | Wickets | Average | Economy | Strike Rate |
| Bhuvneshwar Kumar | 15 | 18 | 18.22 | 6.43 | 17 |
| Jasprit Bumrah | 11 | 13 | 21.84 | 6.87 | 19 |
As far as bowling is concerned, the return of Bhuvneshwar Kumar remains one of the positives for Hyderabad. The Indian veteran has picked 18 wickets in 15 innings against Mumbai. His national teammate, Jasprit Bumrah, enjoys a similar run of form against Hyderabad, picking 13 wickets in 11 innings against them. Both the bowlers have bowled at an economy of under seven.
Featured photo: AFP / Indranil Mukherjee
