Table reality: MI 9th with 2 wins/9 games. LSG 10th with 2 wins/8 games. Both “languishing at the bottom ”Stakes: “Monday’s clash could prove decisive in determining whether either side can keep their playoff aspirations alive”. MI need to win all 5 remaining games to reach 14 points. LSG have lost 5 straight. Before the start of IPL 2026, many experts rated Mumbai Indians (MI) among the stronger sides for this season. They started emphatically, chasing down 221 against Kolkata Knight Riders with five balls to spare. It was the first time since 2012 that MI won their first match of an IPL season. All that is a distant memory now as they find themselves at No. 9 on the points table with just two wins from nine games and their playoff hopes hanging by the thinnest of threads. Form: 3 consecutive defeats, including 8-wicket loss to CSK Key issues: Inconsistent performances from Bumrah, SKY, Tilak, Hardik. Hardik’s leadership “under scrutiny ”Injury blow: Rohit Sharma absent with hamstring injury Playoff math: “Campaign is 99.999% over” per Murali Kartik. Even 5/5 wins only gets them to 14 points, likely not enough Bright spot: Naman Dhir 233 runs, SR 147.17, 57 off 37 vs CSK. AM Ghazanfar 11 wickets, MI’s best bowler. Lucknow Super Giants Form: 5 straight losses, last one Super Over heartbreak vs KKR Key issues: “Repeated batting failures despite commendable efforts from bowlers”. Pooran only 82 runs all season, SR <100 Bowling positives: Mohsin Khan 5/23 last game. Prince Yadav 13 wickets, eco 8.06Captaincy pressure: Rishabh Pant “under pressure to turn around his side's fortunes”. Only 189 runs, SR 126.84. Their opponents for Monday's game at the Wankhede Stadium are Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), and they too are in a similar situation. They started the season by winning two of their first three games but are now on a five-match losing streak. While the LSG seamers have been among the best in the tournament, their batters have struggled - none more so than Nicholas Pooran. Moved down from his usual No. 3 spot, Pooran has scored just 82 runs in eight innings at a strike rate of 81.18. Naman Dhir vs Mohsin Khan: MI’s in-form batter vs LSG’s 5-wicket hero SKY/Hardik vs LSG pace: Shami, Mohsin, Prince Yadav to test MI’s misfiring middle order Pant/Pooran vs Bumrah: LSG’s struggling stars need to fire against MI’s strike bowler, though even Bumrah has “struggled to contain runs consistently” MI Predicted XI: Will Jacks, Ryan Rickelton, Naman Dhir, Hardik Pandya (c), SKY, Tilak Varma, Robin Minz, Trent Boult, Bumrah, AM Ghazanfar, Ashwani Kumar LSG Predicted XI: Pant (c), Markram, Marsh, Pooran, Himmat Singh, Badoni, Mohsin, Shami, George Linde, Prince Yadav, Digvesh Rathi The match will be played on pitch no. 4. This track has been used only once so far this season. In that game, Punjab Kings chased down MI's 195 for 6 with seven wickets and 21 balls in hand. Expect another high-scoring game on Monday as well. The temperature is expected to hover around 30°Celsius with 72% humidity in the evening after touching 35°C during the day. There is no chance of rain.