IPL: Our cricket tipster The Edge previews Thursday’s IPL game between Chennai Super Kings v Mumbai Indians with a recommended BETDAQ bet.

Chennai Super Kings v Mumbai Indians

MATCH OVERVIEW:

The IPL continues on Thursday as Chennai Super Kings take on Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede in Mumbai. What used to be a top of the table clash in years gone by on BETDAQ Betting Exchange is now a bottom of the table clash! What can you say about both of these sides other than this season just hasn’t gone well for them. I felt Mumbai might have a chance to get off the bottom of the table but a massive 52 run loss against KKR on Monday has basically nailed them to bottom again. There’s a four point gap to CSK sitting in second last, and although CSK have been poor they have looked better than Mumbai.

It’s pretty easy to see what has gone wrong for both sides. Both management teams got the auction badly wrong and they came into this IPL with their weakest ever squad. They don’t have poor players, it’s just we are used to these two having the best two sides in the tournament and that just hasn’t been the case. A lot of the players CSK let go have been doing very well – just look at Faf du Plessis at RCB and Jadeja just didn’t settle into the role of captain. Dhoni doesn’t have many years (if any!) left and CSK are going to go through a lot of changes over the next few years.

When you look at the CSK problem, you feel that they can bounce back. Let’s not forget they finish second last in 2021 before winning the tournament in 2021 again! I feel there are bigger issues at Mumbai. Their middle-order looks pretty weak, and their openers haven’t fired to give them a platform. Where the real issue is lies with the bowlers though. They just haven’t been good enough and that’s down to a poor performance at the auction from the management in my opinion. Nevertheless, another interesting game between two IPL giants awaits.

WEATHER AND PITCH WATCH:

This was the only major ground we had ground data from heading into this IPL. We also had Pune, but data wasn’t as robust as it was here. So far I would suggest scores have been in line with what we would have expected. The last two games here saw first inning scores of 192/3 and 189/5 with the latter chased down. Usually we see high scoring conditions, with a par score over the course of the season working out between 170 and 180 over the years. Generally you want to be with the batting side, and if you get dew then the last five overs of the first innings can really go the distance before switching to the chasing side for a trade. We have had a few sizable chases here this season, but I would bat first – conditions look great for batting and it gives the side batting first a real chance to put on the pressure.

RECOMMENDED BET:

Usually there would be a huge amount on the line at the top of the table for these two, but here we are sitting last and second last. I felt Mumbai might beat KKR prior to that game because they put back-to-back wins together and to be honest KKR haven’t been good this season either. I was very wrong as Mumbai were hammered, and on paper here CSK have been the better side this season. This Mumbai bowling is just too bad to put enough pressure on, and if CSK were to lose the game I think it would be down to them under performing rather than Mumbai actually going out and winning in. From that point of view, I’m very happy to be on CSK here but I’m also keen to keep stakes small given the lack of quality moments from both sides this season.

The Edge Says:
One point win Chennai Super Kings to beat Mumbai Indians at 1.87 with BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE

View the market here -> https://betdaq.biz/CskMum

IN-RUNNING STRATEGY:

Once again following on from above, I would definitely keep stakes low here. Both these sides have been poor this season and poor batting can come from anywhere. I feel there are two angles to focus on in this game. The first one is a slight edge for the team who bats first, but again being careful because both sides have let us down so much already. The second angle I see is taking on the Mumbai bowling. The bowling for Mumbai this season has been terrible, and CSK only need one or two partnerships to really take it apart. If they bat first and are well set going into the final five or so overs I could see carnage coming. Definitely a game to be a little cagey when trading, but the Mumbai bowling could be the chance to attack the market if CSK batters are well set.