April 30 (Punjab Khabarnama) : After back-to-back losses in their ongoing campaign in IPL 2024, Mumbai Indians’ chances to make the playoffs this season significantly reduced. And if they lose today at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow against the KL Rahul-led Lucknow Super Giants, they will find themselves in the same situation as Royal Challengers Bengaluru. When the season had kicked, Mumbai looked one of those teams who were certain to make the playoffs despite their lack of spin options.
On paper, they had the best batting and pace unit. Yet, injuries of Jason Behrendorff and Dilshan Madushanka and their replacements – Luke Wood and Kwena Maphaka – having a poor run of form, along with Nuwan Thushara, have left MI in a precarious position. Furthermore, Gerald Coetzee, despite his 12 wickets in eight games, has been rather inconsistent with the ball. Jasprit Bumrah, with 14 wickets at an economy rate of well under seven, has been their only standout bowler.
Lucknow, too, head into the match on the back of a loss in their previous game, yet they are favourites to inflict damage on Mumbai for two reasons – they will be playing at home and have been boosted by the return of Mayank Yadav.
However, amid the IPL 2024 battle in Lucknow and the scenarios for the two teams for the playoffs, the one that will take centrestage will be Rahul. The LSG skipper will have one last shot, probably, to stake claim on the second wicketkeeper’s spot in the Indian team before BCCI announces the T20 World Cup squad.
Rahul’s strike-rate in the shortest format has always been a bone of contention. Despite the advantage of field restrictions in the Powerplay, Rahul has always been a slow starter in IPL. However, the LSG captain has managed to change gears this season. In the 2024 edition, he scored 378 runs at a strike rate of 144.27 but it is still less than that of Rishabh Pant (160.60) and Sanju Samson (161.08).
While comeback man Pant has all but sealed the first wicketkeeper’s spot for the World Cup tournament in the Caribbean islands and the USA in June by displaying some sharp work behind the stumps and sensational knocks with the bat, Samson has also made a strong case for himself by playing match-winning knocks for Rajasthan Royals at a brisk pace.
In such a scenario, Rahul needs to play more fearlessly and exploit the field restrictions not only to strengthen his Indian team selection prospects but also to help his side score in excess of 200 runs, which has become a norm in this edition.
