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 Jittery Mumbai Indians take on Bangalore Royal Challengers
27th May 2008 23:04 IST
Agencies
With their semi-final fate hinging on a match to be played by other teams, Mumbai Indians take on Bangalore Royal Challengers in their final IPL league match on Wednesday hoping that Deccan Chargers do them a favour by upsetting Chennai Super Kings on Tuesday night.
The Mumbai outfit could have come within touching distance of a semi-final berth had it beaten Rajasthan Royals Tuesday night but some atrocious fielding coupled with poor bowling at the death has left the team in a situation that could make Wednesday's match a battle for the wooden spoon.
Mumbai desperately need Chennai to lose to Deccan Chargers, a team already out of contention and yet to win at home, in their final league engagement.
A Chennai win would put Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men in the semifinal at the expense of Mumbai, who are third from the bottom in the points table and trail Chennai by two points.
A loss for Chennai, who start overwhelming favourites against the Chargers, would give Mumbai a shot at the semifinals and make Wednesday's match against Challengers a must-win encounter for them.
The Mumbai outfit would be aiming to get over its last-over blues that has seen the team lose its past three matches.
While coach Lalchand Rajput has blamed it on luck, skipper Sachin Tendulkar is still baffled as to what the team needs to do to avoid snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.
The Royal Challengers, in contrast, have been rejuvenated by a win over Chennai in their previous match and Rahul Dravid's men would aim to end what has been a disappointing tournament for them, on a high.
Interestingly, the Challengers had beaten Mumbai in their away match to record their first win of the tournament.
But whether Wednesday?s match ends up being inconsequential or an anticipated battle would hinge on Tuesday's result. |
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