Mumbai, April 17, 2025 – In a pivotal clash of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, Mumbai Indians (MI) captain Hardik Pandya won the toss and elected to bowl first against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Match 33 at the iconic Wankhede Stadium. Both teams, with two wins from six matches, were desperate to climb the points table, making this encounter a make-or-break moment in their IPL campaigns.
Toss and Team Updates
Hardik Pandya, addressing the crowd at the toss, cited the dew factor and Wankhede’s batting-friendly conditions as reasons for choosing to chase. “The pitch looks good for batting, and with dew expected later, we want to bowl first and restrict them,” Pandya said. MI retained their unchanged XI from their previous 12-run victory against Delhi Capitals, banking on their experienced bowling attack led by Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult.SRH captain Pat Cummins, who would have preferred to bat first, expressed confidence in his team’s explosive batting lineup, fresh off a record-breaking 245-run chase against Punjab Kings. “We’ve got the firepower to post a big total, and our bowlers are ready to defend,” Cummins noted. SRH also fielded an unchanged XI, featuring big-hitters like Travis Head, Heinrich Klaasen, and new recruit Ishan Kishan.
Playing XIs
Mumbai Indians: Ryan Rickelton (wk), Will Jacks, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya (c), Naman Dhir, Mitchell Santner, Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah, Karn Sharma.
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Ishan Kishan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Aniket Verma, Pat Cummins (c), Harshal Patel, Zeeshan Ansari, Mohammed Shami, Eshan Malinga.
Pitch and Conditions
The Wankhede Stadium pitch is renowned for favoring batsmen, with an average first-innings score of around 200 in IPL 2025. Recent matches at the venue, such as MI’s game against Delhi Capitals (where 398 runs were scored in 39 overs), hinted at another run-fest. However, reports of a potential unexpected downpour raised concerns about interruptions, with the weather expected to be humid at 29°C
