With their backs against the wall after two disappointing results – a loss to Jammu & Kashmir and a draw against Railways -- Mumbai will hope to put on a better show against Uttar Pradesh in their third Group A Ranji Trophy encounter in Green Park, Kanpur, on Sunday.
However, it will be easier said than done for the Suryakumar Yadav-led side. For one, Uttar Pradesh, led by all-rounder Piyush Chawla, boast of a formidable line-up. Second, the Mumbai players will have to cope with the extreme cold that has gripped that part of India.
But Mumbai's priority will be to get their combination right, something they have failed to do in their last couple of games. The former Ranji champions are struggling with lack of experience in the top-order after Wasim Jaffer's hand injury in the first game. Yadav fielded two new pairs — Kevin Almeida and Bravish Shetty vs J&K and Sushant Marathe and Shetty vs Railways – in the two games, and both experiments failed.
The other concern for Mumbai is the form of senior batsmen Abhishek Nayar and Aditya Tare. None of the two has made an impressions so far, with the majority of responsibility falling on the young shoulders of skipper Yadav.
Youngster Shreyas Iyer, too, has failed to to grab eyeballs.
Mumbai have concerns in the bowling department too. Seamer Javed Khan, who saved Mumbai from following on after batting with an injured hand in the last match, has been ruled out of this game. He has been replaced by Wilkin Mota. The onus of picking up wickets will thus lie on two-seasoned bowlers, Shardul Thakur and left-arm spinner Vishal Dabholkar.
Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh, who defeated Madhya Pradesh by four wickets in the last game, have the perfect mix of young and experience. Praveen Kumar will lead the attack, supported by Chawla with the old ball.
ELSEWHERE
Group A: Baroda vs J&K in Vadodara, Tamil Nadu vs MP in Chennai, Railways vs Karnataka in Delhi; Group B: Delhi vs Rajasthan in Delhi, Haryana vs Vidarbha in Rohtak, Maharashtra vs Punjab in Pune, Saurashtra vs Gujarat in Rajkot; Group C: Goa vs HP in Porvorim, Jharkhand vs Tripura in Dhanbad, Kerala vs Hyderabad in Wayanad (Live on Star Sports 2 at 9.30 am), Services vs Andhra in Delhi
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