Mumbai Indians hopes for a desperate win to end losing streak

It’s hard to be defending champions Mumbai Indians right now, having failed to win any of their first four matches of this season’s IPL. Rohit Sharma and the team that he took to the trophy will be desperate to end their streak against Sunrisers Hyderabad in their last match in the UAE. The IPL will return to India on the 2nd of May. Placed last, the title holders will not get a better chance of opening their account than taking on a Sunrisers, who are just a shade better with only one win and three losses.





Mumbai's batting has come a cropper till now. Despite the big names in their ranks, the team has managed just a few telling knocks between them. The likes of skipper Rohit Sharma, Mike Hussey, Corey Anderson and Kieron Pollard have failed to fire in unison and when needed. Ambati Rayadu has shown glimpses of his talent, but none were match-winning efforts. Come tomorrow, Mumbai will need all these hard-hitting batsmen to contribute if they want to end their drought in the desert.

As far as the bowling is concerned, veterans Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh wi l l need to use their experience to help register their first win. Although mercurial speedster Lasith Malinga has been both economical as well as among the wickets, he has fallen short in his ability to get quick wickets, especially at the end of the innings. Mumbai will require their bowling spearhead to rise to the occasion. Besides him, the team will also expect Pragyan Ojha, Harbhajan’s spin partner, Anderson and Pollard to keep up the pressure in the middle overs.

Sunrisers Hyderabad have had just two batsmen, Australians Aaron Finch and David Warner, making a mark so far in the competition. While the team will bank heavily on Finch and Warner yet again, it is probably time for skipper, and Warner's opening partner, Shikhar Dhawan to come good on his talent. The middle-order, with the likes of Lokesh Rahul, Y Venugopal Rao and Darren Sammy, will also need to play an important role. In contrast, their bowlers have not been too shabby.