The road to semi-finals remains tough for Mumbai Indians as they prepare to take on an equally desperate Kings XI Punjab in a crucial Indian Premier League match in Centurion on Tuesday.
Just one point separates the two teams on the championship table with Punjab ahead at the fifth spot after 10 matches. In fact, Punjab had got the better of Mumbai when the two teams faced off the first time around in the event.
Mumbai is also through with 10 matches, having notched up four wins against five losses and a washout. Sachin Tendulkar’s men endured a three-match losing streak before finally managing a win against Royal Challengers Bangalore on Sunday night.
Punjab has been strengthened by the arrival of Australian pacer Brett Lee, who impressed with both bat and ball in the nail-biting win over Deccan Chargers in his first IPL match this season.
Among the batsmen, Mahela Jayawardene scored a fifty against Deccan and will have to play a key role in the middle order.
Both the teams have lost some close encounters and it would be interesting to see how the two captains – Tendulkar and Yuvraj respond if the match turns out to be a humdinger.
With the race to semifinals heating up, Tuesday’s contest is of immense significance as both Mumbai and Punjab are locked in an intense battle to be among the top-four.
