CSK have got another chance to play at home and also another chance to play against MI, After having comprehensively defeated by their fierce rivals in the two league games by margins of 37 & 46 runs respectively.

CSK had a horrific day at the office at Mohali when they suffered a six-wicket defeat to Kings XI while defending 170. Extremely inconsistent bowling and unexpectedly sloppy batting in the last few overs were reasons for that defeat , Completely overshadowing the brilliant knock by Faf (96)

Meanwhile, Table toppers MI have reached the position with 5/7 games at home and 4/7 games away from home, With Hardik, Bumrah making vital contributions and the likes of Quinton De Kock and Rohit Sharma peaking at the right time.

Their victory in the last league game of the IPL, Eliminated Kolkatta knight riders and also gave entry to Sunrisers Hyderabad with just 12 points in the bag; A first of its kind in the history of IPL.

Kedhar Jadhav's injury in his left shoulder which he sustained on Sunday has ruled him out of the remainder of the season and probably out of the world cup as well. He though had a lukewarm tournament with just 162 runs in 12 innings with a strike-rate of 95.86 and a top score of 58 against Mumbai Indians at Mumbai on April 3rd. No replacement has been named yet. Dhruv Shorey would be given a go, As Jadhav was primarily used as a batsman instead of being seen as an all-rounder by the management .

With Jadhav out ,It's a must for Watson and Rayudu to justify their presance in the team by making a solid impact .

Having a very settled lineup, MI are unlikely to make any changes unless the management wishes to bring back Evin Levis. In case if a 3rd spinner is required, Anukul Roy may get another chance. 

In the CSK camp, The bowling troubles the team more than anything. In the match against Kings XI Punjab, Everyone other than Chahar and Bravo went for above 7 per over. Harbhajan gave 41/0 in his first two but came back stronger with 3/16 in his next two overs. 

In a track that could provide assistance, CSK's spinners could get back to their own best on Tuesday. Not to forget the fact that Tahir's four wickets were instrumental in Dismantling the Delhi Capitals batting line up to secure an 80 run victory in the process of defending 179/4.

Whichever team that wins it here, Would go straight through to the final at Hyderabad on 12th, While the loser would face the winner of the eliminator (DC or SRH ) on Friday at Vishakapatnam in the second qualifier 

The eliminator is scheduled to be played on Wednesday at Vishakapatnam .

The playoff matches and the final is scheduled to start half an hour earlier, Instead of the usual time of 8 P.M 

- Kumaran Kumanan

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