Mumbai Indians will be looking to make it four wins in a row this season in the Indian Premier League when they take on the Gujarat Lions at the Wankhede Stadium in the first of the two matches today. Mumbai started the season with a loss against the Rising Pune Supergiant but came back strong to win three matches in a row. However, they face a tough test against the Gujarat Lions, a team they have never beaten.
Gujarat Lions, captained by Suresh Raina, also started the season in bad form as they lost their opening two matches. But they put in a really good performance against Pune to pick up their first win of the season and they will be looking to build on that.
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All their players were in really good form against Pune with the likes of Brendon McCullum and Dwayne Smith just missing out on a half-century. Suresh Raina and Aaron Finch also put in a good performance with the bat and they need to continue that form against Mumbai to pick up their second win.
Despite those outstanding displays with the bat, all eyes will be on Australia bowler Andrew Tye in this clash against Mumbai. The Australian was making his IPL debut against Pune and he picked up five wickets in total, which included a hat trick. He now has the best bowling figures in VIVO IPL 2017 and these figures are also Tye's best figures in T20 cricket.
Mumbai Indians have certainly become one of the teams to watch out for this season after they picked up three continuous wins. They narrowly missed out on a top-four finish last season and they will be hoping to avoid that this time. The last two times Mumbai and Gujarat met, Gujarat came out on top and Mumbai will be eager to get their first win over them this season.
In Mumbai's previous match against the Royal Challengers Bangalore, it looked like they could be set for their second defeat of the season after Samuel Badree took an early hat trick. But they managed to overcome that hurdle as Kieron Pollard's 47-ball 70 turned things in their favour.
Despite Pollard coming to the rescue for the Mumbai Indians, their captain Rohit Sharma has not been able to perform at all this season. While his captaincy is certainly paying off after three wins in a row, his performances with the bat have been really disappointing. He has not scored more than five in any of the matches so far with his best score being four that he scored against the Sunrisers Hyderabad.
This is a big game for both teams as they look to pick up some early points and a re-born Gujarat Lions will be looking to build on their recent win and back up their performance from last season that saw them top the table. The good news for the Mumbai Indians ahead of this match is that Lasith Malinga is set to make his return after he missed the last match due to illness.
Where to watch
The IPL match between the Mumbai Indians and the Gujarat Lions is set to start at 4 pm IST (11.30am BST, 6.30am ET).
TV and Live streaming information
India: TV: Sony Max, Sony Six, Sony Six HD, Sony Max, Sony ESPN and Sony ESPN HD. Live Streaming: Hotstar.
USA: TV: Willow TV. Live Streaming: Willow TV Online.
UK: TV: Sky Sports Mix. Live Streaming: Sky Sports Go.
International: Live Streaming: Cricketgateway.
Middle East: TV: OSN Sports Cricket HD. Live Streaming: OSN Play.
South Africa: TV: SuperSport Two. Live Streaming: SuperSport Live Video.
