A win is absolutely necessary for Kolkata if they want any chance of defending their title.
Where: Wankhede Stadium
When: 14.30 BST
Watch the live stream of Mumbai Indians v Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2013 IPL here.
Kolkata Knight Riders have to beat the in-form Mumbai Indians if they want any chance of reaching the play-offs and defending their IPL crown.
It has been an extremely disappointing year for Kolkata as their defence of the maiden title they won in 2012 has failed with something of a whimper.
Despite a highly talented squad and a capable captain in Gautam Gambhir, KKR have lost seven of their opening 11 fixtures and are languishing six points off the play-off positions.
However, Kings XI Punjab showed on Monday that when it really mattered the underdog can perform as they won against the odds by beating Royal Challengers Bangalore, so there is still hope for the Knight Riders.
The franchise have a good batting line-up in Gambhir, Eoin Morgan, Jacques Kallis and Yusuf Pathan – with the Indian seeming to have found the form that has deserted him for so long in the IPL.
With the ball Sunil Narine has been consistent all season and if the side could just work in tandem for a strong finish to the tournament they may still be in with a shot.
Yet their opponents today are no pushovers, with Mumbai looking solid once again this year and already a shoe-in for the top four.
Regular captain Ricky Ponting has experimented in handing leadership to batsman Rohit Sharma, with varied success, although it seems to have done wonders for the Indian’s batting performances as he is currently third in line for the Orange Cap.
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