Sunday is bracing up for one of the biggest matches of this Indian Premier League (IPL) so far as the two five-time champions Mumbai Indians (MI) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) brace up for what is talked about as IPL's version of the '
El Clasico
' between Spanish football giants Barcelona and Real Madrid.
IPL 2024 POINTS TABLE
Given the success MI and CSK have had since the league started in 2008 and the number of stars each squad possesses, their face-off has drawn the most attention over the last 7-8 years.
Add to this the fact that this could be MS Dhoni's last match as a player at the 'hallowed'
Wankhede Stadium
in Mumbai, and it turns the game into an even bigger occasion. It was at the Wankhede in the 2011 ODI World Cup final that Dhoni hit the famous six as the title-winning runs for India against Sri Lanka.
Dhoni has led CSK to five IPL titles.
Rohit, the current India captain, is level with Dhoni when it comes to captains who have lifted the IPL trophy the most times. Under Rohit's captaincy, MI too have won five titles.
However, both Dhoni and Rohit are no longer captains. Dhoni relinquished CSK captaincy and handed it over to Ruturaj Gaikwad before the start of the current season, while MI replaced Rohit with Hardik Pandya.
The aura and magnitude of Dhoni and Rohit is such that most of the posters and graphics to promote the game don't have the face of current captains of the two teams. It's being billed as Rohit vs Dhoni.
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MI have had mixed fortunes so far this season. They began their campaign with a hat-trick of defeats but came back to win their last two matches and climb up a little to No. 7 on the table with four points.
In contrast CSK began well, but have lost two of their five matches. They are currently No. 3 with six points from three wins, ahead of Lucknow Super Giants and Sunrisers Hyderabad on net run rate.
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