Mumbai Looks to Maiden Title Win

Kolkata: Mumbai Indians looks first IPL title win when they take on Chennai Super Kings at Eden Garden, Kolkata in Indian Premier League on Sunday.

Embroiled in the spot-fixing scam, becoming champions for a third time would be a daunting task for the Chennai Super Kings when they take on the formidable Mumbai Indians in the summit clash.

The arrest of its management official Gurunath Meiyappan, who is the son-in-law of the team owner and BCCI president N Srinivasan, on the suspicion of betting would have surely dented the morale of the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led side.

It will be a huge challenge for the players and their skipper to cope up with the situation and play their natural game against a team, which is keen to win that elusive trophy.

Chennai have been a part of four consecutive, five overall, finals but it is the best chance for Mumbai to take a good shot at the title and avenge their 2010 final defeat.

It is one trophy that is missing from the cabinet of the milestone man of Indian cricket. He had a heartbreak as Mumbai Indians captain in 2010 when the team lost to Dhoni's men by 22 runs.

On paper, it's a battle of equals with both Chennai and Mumbai boasting explosive Twenty20 specialists in Michael Hussey, Dwayne Smith, Ravindra Jadeja and Kieron Pollard.

Both teams have a penetrating pace attack with Albie Morkel and season's find Mohit Sharma doing a tidy job for Chennai, while Mitchell Johnson, Lasith Malinga and Pollard make a terrific trio in the Mumbai ranks.

Teams from:

Chennai Super Kings: MS Dhoni (Capt. & wk), Michael Hussey, Murali Vijay, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Subramaniam Badrinath, Dwayne Bravo, Albie Morkel, Chris Morris, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohit Sharma, Akila Dananjaya, Faf du Plessis, Ben Hilfenhaus, Jason Holder, Nuwan Kulasekara, Ben Laughlin, Dirk Nannes, Anirudha Srikkanth, Baba Aparajith, Imtiaz Ahmed, Shadab Jakati, R Karthikeyan, Ronit More, Ankit Rajpoot, Wriddhiman Saha (wk) and Vijay Shankar.

Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (Capt.), Dwayne Smith, Aditya Tare (wk), Dinesh Karthik (wk), Kieron Pollard, Ambati Rayudu, Harbhajan Singh, Mitchell Johnson, Lasith Malinga, Pragyan Ojha, Rishi Dhawan, Ricky Ponting, Glenn Maxwell, Jacob Oram, Sachin Tendulkar, Abu Nechim, Amitoze Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal, Munaf Patel, Javed Khan, Sushant Marathe, Akshar Patel, Jalaj Saxena, Pawan Suyal and Suryakumar Yadav.

Pitch and conditions
The weather forecast for Kolkata on Sunday is predominantly cloudy with a chance of showers. It is unlikely that the weather will force a washout, though, and even if it does, there is a reserve day for the final on the following day.

Stats and trivia

• The head-to-head record between the two teams this season is 2-1 in Mumbai's favour in 2013 season. MI won in Chennai and at the home, but lost the first qualifier in Delhi.
• Mumbai have an outstanding record at Eden Gardens, winning five out of the six games they've played there. Super Kings' record isn't shabby either, with four wins in five games.

Match facts
Sunday May 26, 2013 (day/night)
Start time 20:00 local (1430 GMT)