IPL 2023: 3 Players Who Will Be Crucial for Punjab Kings to Win MI vs PBKS Match No. 31

IPL 2023: Punjab Kings looked promising with the start they got in the first two games. They defeated Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals and looked like a strong unit. But then, the last four games haven’t gone their way so far. They lost three out of their last four matches and are in 7th place on the points table.

Adding to that, skipper Shikhar Dhawan is also unwell, which has forced him to miss the last two games. PBKS has missed Dhawan and struggled this season. But the next game is also not going to be easy. They are scheduled to move to Mumbai to play against Mumbai Indians on Saturday at the Wankhede Stadium. MI has won its last three games in a row and is difficult to beat at home. Thus, Punjab needs to rethink its plan and hope Dhawan can play. This article will have three crucial PBKS players for MI vs PBKS Match No. 31.

IPL 2023: 3 Key Players for Punjab Kings in MI vs PBKS Match No. 31

3. Liam Livingstone

English superstar Liam Livingstone is back in the team and played the last game against Royal Challengers Bangalore on Thursday. Though it was not a good game for him, he got out for just 2 runs, but everyone knows what he can do with the bat in hand. Livingstone can single-handedly destroy any bowling lineup, and the pitch at Wankhede is not a big one in front of him.

MI has some inexperienced bowlers in the middle, which can be taken to the cleaners on Saturday. Livingstone will like to make an impact right away because he can be the missing link in PBKS batting this season. The all-rounder is also a useful bowler who can bowl both off-spin and leg-spin, according to the batter. All in all, he will be the player to watch out for when Punjab takes on Mumbai.

2. Sam Curran

The English all-rounder and stand-in captain, Sam Curran, hasn’t gotten going properly this season. He is yet to be at his consistent best. Curran has had some impactful performances in this tournament but hasn’t been consistent enough, which is a problem for Punjab. Because they had high hopes for their most expensive IPL player.

However, with his vast experience and skill set, Curran can turn the game on its head. That’s what the franchise will hope he does against MI to register an important win. Because they can’t afford to lose more games from here as the tournament is heading toward the second half. But a player of Curran’s caliber, who can win the games with both bat and ball, is very rare. On top of that, he would be up against another expensive IPL player, Cameron Green, and would look to make a big mark.

1. Shikhar Dhawan

PBKS skipper Shikhar Dhawan is the backbone of the batting lineup, which he already showed in the first four games, he played. Dhawan was the highest run-scorer in the first four games of the tournament. He scored 233 runs in four innings at an extraordinary average of 116.50 and a strike rate of 146.54, with three half-centuries.

But he got sick ahead of the game against Lucknow and still hasn’t recovered. Though the PBKS fielding coach updated after the RCB game on Thursday that Dhawan might take another 2-3 days to recover, which is still 50-50 on his return. But if he can play the game on Saturday, it will be the biggest positive for PBKS and the biggest threat for the Mumbai Indians because of the way he is batting.