Mumbai, May 13: It may well be stating the obvious but Wednesday’s clash provides both Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians a wonderful chance to continue their process-driven success. It will also see the return of Sachin Tendulkar to the crease after a long break and his IPL debut.

The visitors will be itching to put this one in their bag and inch closer towards a semifinal spot while the hosts will look for continued success once the amazing turnaround came after surrendering their first four matches. The last three games saw the Indians plug the holes well, finishing the innings, be it while batting or bowling, more efficiently.

Without doubt the return of Tendulkar is big news. The team dynamics are bound to change with the master taking his rightful place at the top of the order and also the reins from Shaun Pollock, who must be credited for making this team remain upbeat inspite of the early setbacks.

Mumbai have been well served by the local talent of Abhishek Nayar and Yogesh Takwale who have contributed handsomely with the bat, their runs coming at a fair clip. Dhawal Kulkarni and Muzafir Khote have also had their moments with the ball with their deceptive pace. Wednesday will be a true test of their character and they will all have to be at their best to counter the Super Kings who have suddenly rediscovered their winning ways.

Foreign options for the Mumbai Indians will be open with Dwayne Bravo still available. The onus will be on Pollock and Sanath Jayasuriya to keep the momentum going. The other imports available are Loots Bosman, Dilhara Fernando, Ashwell Prince and Domnic Thronely. Luke Ronch is likely to don the keeping gloves while Fernando could come in to bolster the new ball department.

Chennai survived a scare against the Indians in their home game after Nayar batted like a dream in the company of Harbhajan Singh almost pulling off a win in a contest that looked over at one stage. It will be crucial for the Super Kings to not err with their length as Mumbai Indians are blessed with batsmen who can take full toll of anything marginally wrong.

Chennai’s fielding and intensity have been top class in the last two games. Success does usher in confidence and that has been apparent in the way they have gone about their business lately. The body language has been positive.

Manpreet Gony and Albie Morkel did a wonderful job against Kings XI Punjab during the power play and if they can reproduce that form here they would be doing their side a huge favour. Chennai will have other batsmen to watch out for. The Mumbai batting is top heavy with Robin Uthappa who has looked in good touch set to come in number three.

The trio of S. Vidyut, S. Badrinath and Suresh Raina are no more the support cast. They have the lead role to play from here. Morkel and Dhoni have put the long handle to good use.

An area where Mumbai could suffer is with their one-dimensional attack against a set of players who have all looked in good nick. The absence of Harbhajan has deprived Mumbai of a quality spinner. Medium pacers bowling at nearly the same pace and operating with similar styles might not be enough to test the Chennai team fully.

With both teams blessed with good batsmen it will more or less boil down to how Chennai bowls to Sachin and Jayasuriya. If they can mange to keep the two veterans quiet for a reasonable length of time, they may gain the upper hand.

The only match played here at the Wankhade was not a high scoring affair with Bangalore Royal Challengers squeaking through in a thrilling chase. The wicket looks flat but stroke making will not be easy. If the team batting first can put in excess of 175 they will stand a good chance. A crucial match between two evenly matched sides leaves no room for any outlandish predictions.