Mumbai Indians (MI) will host the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday. This is the last time that the Mumbai Indians will be playing at their official home ground as matches from May 1 will be shifted out of Maharashtra.
The Rohit Sharma-led side will want to win their last game at their home ground, but it is not going to be an easy task as they will be facing an upbeat KKR side.
KKR will look to reclaim top spot in the IPL points table by registering their fourth win in a row.
When these two sides met at the Eden Gardens earlier this month, Rohit spoilt KKR's party with a wonderful knock. That is the only game that KKR have lost so far in IPL 2016.
This game has all the elements to be a thrilling one. Here is a look at some of the key players who can make a difference:
Mumbai Indians:
Jos Buttler: His role in the middle-order is absolutely crucial. We saw a glimpse of what Buttler is capable of doing in the last match against the Kings XI Punjab. Buttler is someone who can score boundaries at will and cause some serious damage. KKR will have to find a way to limit the damage during Thursday's game.
Jasprit Bumrah: He was the pick of the bowlers in the last game against the Kings XI Punjab. If Bumrah is on song, both with the new and the old ball, KKR batsmen will have a tough time scoring against this talented seamer, who can bowl the yorkers with ease.
Kolkata Knight Riders:
Gautam Gambhir: The left-handed opening batsman has led his side from the front. KKR can depend on their skipper when it comes to scoring some valuable runs at the top of the order. Gambhir is one of the highest run-getters in IPL 2016. He also has been spot on with his tactics. However, he got run out cheaply in the last match. Therefore, he will be raring to score some runs against the Mumbai Indians on Thursday.
Suryakumar Yadav: He was promoted up the batting order as Manish Pandey was unavailable. Pandey will not be there in the playing XI against Mumbai Indians as well as he is down with chicken pox. Suryakumar Yadav will have to don a similar role again. He can be extremely dangerous, with his knock of 60 from 49 balls in the last match, against RPS, proof of that fact.
