A nightmare leg in UAE now done and dusted, the Mumbai Indians will hope to ignite their IPL 2014 season when they return to more familiar confines of the Wankhede Stadium. However, the defending champions face their stiffest test yet in the shape of the marauding, unbeaten Kings XI Punjab.
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The match is scheduled for a 4 pm IST (11.30 am BST, 6.30 am ET) start with live coverage on Sony Six (English) and Sony Max (Hindi) in India. The game can also be watched via live streaming online HERE or HERE. Viewers around the world can live stream the T20 action HERE or HERE. Watch the game in the US through Willow TV or via the live streaming optionHERE, while Canada viewers can watch the games on Sportsnet or HERE.
Viewers in the UK can catch the match on ITV, while Pakistan viewers can do the same on Geo Super, with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh audience able to watch the game on TV on Masaranga TV and Carlton Sports Network respectively. Viewers in the Middle East can watch the action on OSN with the live streaming option HERE, while New Zealand viewers can do the same via Sky NZ or HERE or via the above rest of the world options.
MI have not won a single game this season, losing pretty much all of them handsomely, with their batting looking more beaten up than a building that has seen a couple of World Wars.
Come Saturday afternoon, something will have to give, because another loss and their defence could just be over before the season has even warmed-up.
"We all know it has been a disappointing start," said Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma, one of many to disappoint with the bat this year. "We did not do certain things right. We committed a lot of mistakes right from the first game against the Kolkata [Knight Riders] till the last game against the Sunrisers [Hyderabad] and kept repeating them.
"That can happen, it's a new team. It's a different challenge now. We have come to Mumbai now and we know the conditions here. It's a fortress. Last year, we won eight out of eight.
"We will try and keep that record intact. It will be a challenge as we will be playing the table toppers. The crowd here is very enthusiastic. It will be an extra advantage for us."
Like Rohit said, the challenge of getting the better of KXIP is a massive one. Along with the Chennai Super Kings, Kings XI have been the best team in IPL 2014, and while their batting has looked formidable, and then some, the bowlers have also stepped up when needed.
"The tournament is in a few sections for us and this is the second section, so whilst it's great to have the start we have had, it is almost like starting from scratch again now that we are back in India," Kings XI captain George Bailey said.
"We have got a brand of cricket that we like to play and we have got some things we like to tick off game by game. And if we are doing that or are close to doing that, then we will be happy as a group. Sometimes, someone from the opposition will play a magnificent game and there is not much you can do about it and that is the nature of T20. You just have got to enjoy that."
Unfortunately for MI, no player has quite had that "magnificent game" this season; Kieron Pollard threatened to pull one of those rabbits out of his hat against the Sunrisers in the last game, but the West Indian's tremendous hitting towards the end proved to be too little too late, with SRH holding on for a win.
Rohit admitted his team need to improve on their batting to stand any chance of making the Playoffs. "Batting has not been up to the mark," Rohit said. "We are disappointed the way we batted. Shot selection wasn't that great. We have come to familiar conditions and all our batsmen know how to bat on this wicket and I hope for a better batting performance from all our batters.
"We just have to win eight games out of nine. It will be a difficult task, but as I said, we don't want to think too far ahead. Tomorrow [Saturday] is an important game. We want to win that and then think about the next game. That will be our strategy."
