Match Previews / Andrew Hughes / 10 May 2011 /

Its crunch time in Chennai for the Daredevils, who need to beat the Super Kings to keep alive their slim hopes of reaching the IPL play-offs.

Chennai
Chennai have tended to play three spinners, especially at home, but on Monday, the underperforming Sri Lankan Suraj Randiv was dropped to make room for new arrival Dwayne Bravo and we can expect an unchanged team for this game.

Delhi
The loss of captain Virender Sehwag to a shoulder injury means yet another reshuffle for Delhi. Aaron Finch could return to the side and open with David Warner or they may be tempted to bring back Roelof van der Merwe to strengthen the spin bowling. James Hopes takes over captaincy duties.

Match Odds
Delhi are big outsiders at [3.15] to win this game and it is not hard to see why. Their batting depends hugely on Sehwag and in his absence, they look even more lightweight than usual. And it is hard to see their bowlers getting much joy out of the flat pitch at the M A Chidambaram Stadium. Chennai, on the other hand, have quietly gone about their business, accumulating wins, building momentum and looking every inch the defending champions. Though odds of [1.43] about a home win are not too appealing, they look about right.

Top Chennai Batsman
The big names at the top of the Chennai order, Michael Hussey and Suresh Raina, tend to attract most attention, but the value in this market is to back Murali Vijay. His tournament average doesn't look as impressive as his more famous colleagues, but their statistics have been boosted by a few not outs, whereas Vijay has yet to carry his bat. Importantly, he is a fixture in a fluid batting order and he is good touch, having scored a half-century last time against Rajasthan. He should be backed at [4.5]

Best Bet

Andrew Hughes says: Back Murali Vijay to top score for Chennai @ 4.5

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