A fifth trophy is within MI's reach | IPL 2020 FINAL - Mumbai Indians vs Delhi Capitals: SWOT Analysis

Defending champions and four-time title winners the Mumbai Indians will face first-time finalist the Delhi Capitals in the summit clash of IPL 2020 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Here is our last analysis of the season.

The SWOT for MI

Strengths: MI’s bowling has been outstanding and has been the season's best attack by far. Two of the three leading wicket-takers for the season - Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult - belong to MI. While Bumrah uses his yorkers and variations to great effect, Boult troubles batsmen with early swing. Although he has been benched in recent matches, James Pattinson did well in the first phase of the tournament. Rahul Chahar has been a brilliant spinner who takes wickets and contains runs. Krunal Pandya has supported them well.

Weaknesses: Nathan Coulter-Nile has got just three wickets in six matches. He seems to be preferred over Pattinson due to his lower-order batting strength. With MI's considerable batting depth, is Coulter-Nile really needed? Pattinson already has 11 wickets and has done pretty well so far. In the biggest match of the season, Pattinson may be the better choice.

Opportunities: MI are already the most successful IPL team and one of the best T20 sides of all time. An unprecedented fifth title would etch the team's name in history and raise the team's stature that much higher than all others.

Threats: They should be wary of the injuries to key players. Rohit Sharma and Trent Boult have both been injured recently. If they have not fully recovered and take the field, their performances could be hampered. They may also aggravate their injuries and do more damage.

The SWOT for DC

Strengths: DC's bowlers have taken them to the final. They have the current Purple Cap holder and the bowler with the fastest delivery in IPL history. Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje have troubled batsmen all through the season. Rabada can bowl at any stage of the innings and get wickets. R Ashwin and Axar Patel have got wickets and also contained the run flow when needed.

Weaknesses: They are likely to open with Shikhar Dhawan and Marcus Stoinis after their success in DC's last encounter. If one of them fails, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant and Shimron Hetmyer need to step up and take the team home. Inconsistent batting and poor application have caused most of DC’s losses this season.

Opportunities: It took 13 years but a maiden IPL trophy is within Delhi's reach.

Threats: The players will likely feel the huge pressure of the big occasion. That might lead to mistakes at crucial points in the match. Senior players like R Ashwin and Shikhar Dhawan should encourage the younger lot to play with freedom without worrying about the result.

Head to head:

Matches played: 27

Mumbai Indians: 15

Delhi Capitals: 12

Last five matches (most recent first):

Mumbai Indians: W-L-W-W-L

Delhi Capitals: W-L-W-L-L

What happened in the clashes between the two teams?

The Mumbai Indians and the Delhi Capitals have met three times this season. MI emerged victorious in all of the clashes.

Deccan Herald’s Dream XI

Rohit Sharma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Marcus Stoinis, Kieron Pollard, R Ashwin, Kagiso Rabada, Jasprit Bumrah, Rahul Chahar

Team news

MI pacer Trent Boult suffered a groin injury against DC in Qualifier 1 but is expected to play, according to skipper Rohit Sharma. There are no injuries reported from the DC camp.

Ground conditions

The sky will be hazy with the temperature around 27 degrees Celsius. The humidity will be about 64% with gentle winds.

Impact player for MI

Jasprit Bumrah: With 27 wickets, he is second on the Purple Cap list. He has been brilliant this season and has got rid of the best batsmen at critical junctures. This is Bumrah's time to take his team to the title.

Impact player for DC

Shikhar Dhawan: If he does well, DC are able to put up big totals and chase down daunting scores. He is second on the Orange Cap list with 603 runs. With weaknesses in DC’s batting exposed in recent matches, it's up to Dhawan to deliver a good start and ease the pressure on the middle order.

How to watch

The match will be broadcast live on the Star Sports network. Viewers can also catch the action online on Disney+Hotstar. The match begins at 7.30 PM IST.