The second day of T20 Mumbai promises to be full of riveting action, with debutants Eagle Thane Strikers pitted against the North Mumbai Panthers in the afternoon fixture, while NaMo Bandra Blasters play the ARCS Andheri later under the lights. All teams would be hopeful for a strong start to their Season 2 campaign, with all except ARCS Andheri playing their first games of the tournament on Wednesday.

Here is a deep dive on what to expect from the second day’s fixtures.

Takkar No. 1: Eagle Thane Strikers vs North Mumbai Panthers

League newboys Eagle Thane Strikers would be confident of getting off to a good start after picking up the city’s domestic stars Aditya Tare, Sarfaraz Khan and Shardul Thakur. Both Thakur and Khan are coming off the back of good Indian Premier League stints and would be optimistic of converting that form in this tournament. The team also have a strong mix of all-rounders with the likes of last season star performer Alpesh Ramjani and new sensations Kruthik Hanagavadi and Sachin Wagh in their roster.

The North Mumbai Panthers on the other hand would be looking for a turnaround from last season where they couldn’t make the playoffs. They have a good balance of youth and experience in their squad, with 19-year-old Prithvi Shaw being handed captaincy duties for the second season. They also have explosive batsmen Yashasvi Jaiswal and Jude Singh in their ranks. On the bowling front, the Panthers have experienced campaigners Pravin Tambe and Prathamesh Dake who would be vital to their side’s performances.

Kya Bolta Hai

The North Mumbai Panthers rely heavily on their young batsmen like Shaw and Singh. If the likes of Thakur and Prashant Bhoir can dismiss the Panthers top-order cheaply, the Eagles would be optimistic of soaring high on their debut.

Takkar No. 2: NaMo Bandra Blasters vs ARCS Andheri

The NaMo Bandra Blasters made good use of their auction, firstly by retain top guns Shreyas Iyer and Eknath Kerkar and then by paying big money to poach the stars off other squads like Sujit Nayak and Siddharth Chitnis. They seem very well rounded on the batting front with players like Aditya Dhumal and Prasad Pawar in their ranks. However, their bowling could be an Achilles Heel with a relatively inexperienced youth leading the charge.

ARCS Andheri would be hoping to bounce back from the opening day defeat when they take the field against the NaMo Bandra Blasters. Skipper Kevin Almeida would be hoping for better contributions from his middle-order batsman if they are to get over the line on the second time of asking. Their bowlers Tushar Deshpande and Iqbal Abdullah were good at the beginning but proved expensive in the slog overs. That would be something the veteran bowlers would look to improve on heading into their second game.

Kya Bolta Hai

The key to ARCS Andheri getting a positive result would be capitalizing on the early stages of the game. If their ace bowlers can dismiss the likes of Shreyas Iyer and Sujit Nayak cheaply, they could end up on the winning side.