Daijiworld Media Network

Chennai, Apr 15: I'm not sure if Chennai have stopped celebrating their dramatic last ball victory over Bangalore on Saturday, but it's already time for their next game. This time they face Pune - who are having a miserable start to the season. The big news for Pune is that their regular captain - Angelo Mathews - will not be able to play today because of political reasons in Chennai. Yuvraj's fitness is a concern as well, so Ross Taylor may lead them.

Pune have won the toss and elected to bat.

Taylor is the captain for Pune today.

Teams:

Chennai (Playing XI): Srikkanth Anirudha, Murali Vijay, Suresh Raina, S Badrinath, MS Dhoni(w/c), Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo, Albie Morkel, Chris Morris, Ravichandran Ashwin, Dirk Nannes

Pune (Playing XI): Aaron Finch, Robin Uthappa(w), Manish Pandey, Ross Taylor(c), Abhishek Nayar, Tirumalsetti Suman, Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rahul Sharma, Ashok Dinda

Taylor: 'We are going to enjoy ourselves, we have nothing to lose. We have to try and put the pressure on this Chennai side. It looks a good wicket and we have some exciting players. We have to play with freedom and have some fun. Yuvi is out of the game. Pandey comes in and gets an opportunity. Steven Smith is playing as well. '

Dhoni: 'The last two games we have done brilliantly in all departments. It's important to keeo the momentum going. We have to try a few things in this game. We're confident but we shouldn't get complacent. Close wins help the team - we start believing in ourselves. After the new stadium was constructed, the breeze has made it very comfortable. No player can complain about the heat now. A couple of changes for us. Hussey goes out and Albie comes in. Mohit goes out and Anirudha comes in.'

Badrinath: 'Chennai is like a fortress for us so it was nice to win against Bangalore. I don't think I'm a player who hits the ball out of the stadium like MS does. My strength is to play proper shots and I look to do that. We've got a good wicket this time - it has a lot of runs so hope to cash in. With our team, where we are loaded with big hitters, my role is to play a sheet anchor.'

Match Preview

Facing one of the toughest teams of Indian T20 League is not easy. Having won only one game so far, Pune find themselves in a difficult situation where everyone expects them to lose. Listless players, poor fielding, uninspired batting has pushed them at the bottom of the table and they will be hoping to re-group and re-energize and try to upset the hosts. On the other hand, Chennai will look forward to beat the minnows on their home turf and boost their run-rate to cement their place in the top half of the points table.

Since the match is being played in Chennai, both teams will be missing on Sri Lankan players.

Chennai

Team news: Owing to the political turmoil, Sri Lankan players Nuwan Kulasekara and Akila Dananjaya will not be available for selection. They are unlikely to make any changes retaining their winning combination from the previous match.

In form player: Ravindra Jadeja - It looks like 'Sir' Ravindra Jadeja can do no wrong. Having been the target of all pranks from last few days, Jadeja lived upto his 'Sir' tag on Saturday after taking Chennai home in a close match against arch-rivals Bangalore. Chasing a competitive total of 165, Chennai were two down for 10 before useful contributions by Raina, Badrinath and Dhoni held their innings as they inched closer to the final overs. When Dhoni got out with 30 more runs needed, it looked like Chennai were on a verge of yet another close defeat. However, Jadeja's unbeaten knock of 38 runs, hitting the winning runs off a no-ball after being caught at third man, secured them a thrilling win.

Team form: Won against Bangalore by 4 wickets.

Probable 4 foreigners: Michael Hussey, Dwayne Bravo, Chris Morris, Dirk Nannes

Hit or Miss?

Hit: Chris Morris - Chris Morris justified his selection in the team by a remarkable bowling spell picking up three important wickets in the last match. He cleaned up Gayle in the second over itself to strike the first blow. He later picked up an in-form Kohli and Daniel Christian to slow Bangalore down.

Miss: Murali Vijay - Murali Vijay's form or lack thereof, is a cause of concern for the Chennai camp. In all the matches they have played so far, Chennai has been plagued with the problem of getting a decent start and their top order has looked frail. Vijay's inability to score beyond ones and twos and quick departure within a couple of overs has been over-looked so far. But unless he clicks at the top, Chennai will have trouble coping up in the later stage of the tournament.

Pune

Team news: Captain Angelo Mathews and Ajantha Mendis will be missing from the side due to political reasons and it remains to be seen who will lead the team in Mathew's absence. Also, status of Marlon Samuels, who is out with a groin injury, is still unknown. With Mathews missing, Pune can use the services of Steven Smith or Luke Wright to strengthen both the batting as well as the bowling attack.

In form player: Yuvraj Singh - After missing the previous edition of Indian T20 League, Yuvraj came back in the Pune team all charged up to make up for his absence last year. He has been looking good providing valuable runs in the middle order. In the previous match, he put on a decent partnership with Angelo Mathews to stabilize Pune innings after they lost the first 4 wickets quite quickly. Yuvraj made 24 runs which included two massive sixes. Pune will hope that Yuvraj continues with this good form and look to score big and reverse his side's fortunes.

Team form: Lost to Mumbai by 41 runs.

Probable 4 foreigners: Aaron Finch, Ross Taylor, Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith/Luke Wright

Hit or Miss?

Hit: Mitchell Marsh - Mitchell Marsh's gritty knock of 38 was not able to save Pune from losing to Mumbai by a huge margin of 41 runs. Marsh had had a mediocre tournament so far unable to make runs or bowl well. But, he showed a positive approach in the last match and put up a determined performance. Earlier in the day, he also bowled well to get Dinesh Karthik's wicket at a crucial juncture.

Miss: Ashok Dinda - Equaling the worst bowling figures in the history of Indian T20 League, Dinda had a bad day on the field conceding the opposition too many runs. In his spell of four overs, Dinda gave away 63 runs, 21 of which came off the final one. Moreover, he was not able to get any wickets allowing Mumbai to set up a mammoth total on the board.

Head to head: Chennai - 3 Pune - 1

Quotes:

Mitchell Marsh reckons Pune still has a fighting chance- 'I do not think there is any reason for us to panic, we have got a very good side with us and we just need to get a few wins under our belt and then take on the momentum from there.'

CB pick: Chennai - Although they look good on paper, Pune will have to fight tooth and nail to tame the strong Chennai team, who in turn will look forward to score a comfortable win.