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Time for the final push

In repeat of 2013 showdown, high-flying Mumbai Indians take on formidable Chennai Super Kings for the title clash

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It was only two years ago that Mumbai Indians denied the Chennai Super Kings their third IPL title at the same venue the two teams lock horns for the final on Sunday.

On a typical Kolkata evening and Eden Gardens track, Kieron Pollard did the star turn by scoring an unbeaten 60 and the bowlers did their bit by restricting the mighty CSK batting line-up to 125/9 as Rohit Sharma & Co. lifted their maiden IPL trophy.

How Rohit would love for that to happen again. How Rohit would love Pollard to get going again. How Rohit would love for the bowlers to give nothing away yet again.

It's a bit surprising to think the Mumbai Indians are slight favourites going into the final showdown. They romped into the qualifiers in their own unique fashion: lose a lot of matches initially, get into a knockout position, and win more or less every single match – seven out of eight, actually -- from then on. The fact that they made it to the qualifiers was an achievement in itself, but what they did there was even a bigger one. Playing like true kings at, Mumbai Indians showed the Super Kings their place to storm into the final on Tuesday.

They have the luxury of being well-rested, and have some in-form players to boast. Openers Parthiv Patel and Lendl Simmons have been great together at the top. Simmons has notched up five fifties this season, while Patel has got starts in almost every single match.

Rohit loves to get going at the Eden Gardens, the same venue where he scored an ODI world record 264 against Sri Lanka in November last year. He also cracked a beautiful 98 in the first match of his season against the Knight Riders on the same ground.

If Pollard does a repeat of 2013, things can get really tough for Chennai, more so because the likes of Hardik Pandya and Ambati Rayudu can play the perfect supporting cast.

The bowling has not been Mumbai's strength, but the unit seems to be doing its business fairly well. Harbhajan Singh among the wickets is always good news for the team, and his dismissal of MS Dhoni off the first ball in the qualifier will be fresh in his mind. He'd fancy doing it all over again. Even the celebrations.

Lasith Malinga and Mitchell McClenaghan have fired in the last few matches, and a lot will depend on how the two perform on Sunday with the new ball.

The Super Kings, meanwhile, will be fresh from their three-wicket win over the Royal Challengers Bangalore in Ranchi, and will have momentum on their side.

That they're a team that wears consistency on its sleeve is their biggest strength, and that would be Mumbai's biggest threat. They have players who know how to win matches, and more importantly, the big matches.

Whether they do it again on Sunday remains to be seen. But rest assured, it will be a cracker of a contest.

DID YOU KNOW?
This is Mumbai Indians' third final. They faced Chennai Super Kings in both their previous finals, losing by 22 runs in 2010 and winning by 23 runs in 2013

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