Star-studded fare on offer in Delhi-Mumbai tie

The two teams happen to be old time foes, both currently head the tournament’s points table and for more gossip, national stars Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Rohit Sharma and Ishant Sharma are also making an appearance.

These are of course the selling points. The storyline, however, could provide an excellent twist further if the script goes accordingly—Mumbai bowlers versus Delhi batsmen.

Mumbai haven’t been challenged at home all through the last season. This year too it has been the same story.

They defied Karnataka, featuring superstars Anil Kumble and Rahul Dravid to earn three points.

Unlike the last time, their away form too has been on a high, an outright win over Tamil Nadu helping them head Group A with eight points.

So far, it is Ramesh Powar—the stocky off-spinner—who has provided the special effects. With 15 wickets already from just two matches, he is Mumbai’s main weapon in an arsenal that also boasts of the likes of Ajit Agarkar.

“His experience has proved to be a boon,” says Mumbai coach Pravin Amre, with high hopes that his team provides another hit. Mumbai are confident despite Wasim Jaffer—who boasts of an excellent record against Delhi—missing from the eleven.

Out of five matches Jaffer has played against Delhi, he has 739 runs at the average of 147.80 to his credit, four centuries included. “But we have a good replacement,” insists Mumbai captain Amol Muzumdar, banking on the return of 20-year-old Sharma.

Nevertheless, Mumbai could still face stiff competition. Their opponents this time is a team that is riding on an equal wave of confidence. To top that, Delhi have senior performers like Sehwag and Gambhir—the star attractions.

“Viru and Gautam coming into the side will definitely strengthen our team. They have the experience and their abilities are no secret,” says Delhi’s bowling coach Manoj Prabhakar.

Such is Delhi’s confidence at the moment that Sehwag and Gambhir’s presence—not to forget the others including Akash Chopra, Virat Kohli and Mithun Manhas—that they’re ready to bench opener Shikhar Dhawan, despite the fact that he’s got a century just in the last match. The visitors, to be precise, have a classic mix of the rash and the reputed, young and the old.

With so many stars lined up, this is a worth-watching Friday release in tinsel town.

Dhawan, Bhandari to sit out

The return of Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir will mean that Shikhar Dhawan and Mayank Tehlan will be on the bench. Joining them will be pacer Amit Bhandari and batman Aditya Jain.

“The return of Sehwag and Gambhir means this was expected and since the pitch looks like it will aid spinners, offie Narender Singh comes in place of pacer Bhandari,” said Delhi coach Vijay Dahiya. Meanwhile, Mumbai is expected to make a change in the spin department. Left-arm spinner Iqbal Abdulla is likely to make way for 20-year-old Bhavesh Patel.

Other matches on Friday

Super league: Himachal Pradesh vs Maharashtra at Dharamsala; Hyderabad vs Baroda at Hyderabad; Orissa vs Andhra at Cuttack; Punjab vs Uttar Pradesh at Mohali; Rajasthan vs Saurashtra at Jaipur; Tamil Nadu vs Karnataka at Chennai

Plate group:Assam vs Kerala at Guwahati; Goa vs Madhya Pradesh at Margao; Haryana vs Railways at Rohtak; Jammu & Kashmir vs Jharkhand; Services vs Gujarat at Delhi; Vidarbha vs Tripura at Nagpur