Holders Mumbai Indians face Rising Pune Supergiants in IPL-9 opener

Defending champions Mumbai Indians will take on newcomers Rising Pune Supergiants in the opening game of the ninth edition of the Indian Premier League at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday.

Prolific batsman Rohit Sharma, who led Mumbai to two IPL titles, will once again remain at the helm of affairs of the team, while veteran spinner Harbhajan Singh and swashbuckling all-rounder Kieron Pollard are expected to play pivotal roles.

The addition of England wicketkeeper-batsman Jos Buttler will further strengthen an already formidable looking batting-line up.

Although Mumbai will miss the services of their pace spearhead Lasith Malinga for a couple of weeks, they have enough bench strength to make up for it.

Meanwhile, Supergiants will be led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni, whose side boast of star cricketers like Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin, Faf du Plessis, Steve Smith and Kevin Pietersen.

On the bowling front, Supergiants are expected to be led by the duo of Ishant Sharma and Irfan Pathan.