THE FIGHT TO STAY ALIVE:
Mumbai Indians take on Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 25th match of the Indian Premier League Season at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai Today. Mumbai Indians is not having a great campaign so far, but got a victory in their last match after loosing the first 3 games. Royal Challengers Bangalore too have managed just a solitary win this season and have played a match more than the Mumbai Indians.
MUMBAI INDIANS:
The Mumbai Indians batters have been very attacking in this IPL so far. Both the openers Rohit Sharma and Ishan Khan have a strike rate of 170+ this season and have been providing quickfire starts. Though, both are yet to notch up a fifty this season. Tilak Varma has been very stable scoring 127 runs at an average of 31.75 and strike rate of 145.98. Hardik Pandya though has been scoring runs but the strike rate has been on the slower side. Tim David has been hot and cold scoring 115 runs in 4 Innings at an average of 57.5 and strike rate of 149.35. Romario Shepherd has faced 16 deliveries this season and has hit 54 runs without getting dismissed.
The bowlers, except for Jasprit Bumrah, has been a bit wary. Jasprit Bumrah has arguably been the best bowler of the season so far with 5 wickets in 4 games at an average of 19.2 and economy of just 6.12, where bowlers are going for 10-12 runs an over. Gerald Coetzee picked up 4/34 in the last game vs DC and Akash Madhwal picked up 3/20 against KKR. Other than that, Mumbai Indians bowlers have neither been able to take wickets nor keep the run rate in check
EXPECTED LINE UP OF 12: Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya (c), Tim David, Mohammad Nabi, Romario Shepherd, Piyush Chawla, Gerald Coetzee, Jasprit Bumrah, Akash Madhwal
ROYAL CHALLENGERS BENGALURU:
On the other hand, it seems to be just another season of RCB, where nothing is going their way. Except for Virat Kohli's big knocks and Dinesh Karthik's good finishes in the starting games, the batting hasn't fired at all. The overseas contingent of Faf du Plessis, Cameron Green and Glenn Maxwell have been way below par. Anuj Rawat and Mahipal Lomror played a good knock each, but RCB has constantly tinkered the batting order and their plans have been beyond understanding. In the last game, Karthik and Lomror didn't even get a opportunity to bat and Saurav Chauhan was sent ahead of them. Though Virat Kohli has been the leading run scorer in the tournament so far, the team would like to see him score a bit faster.
The bowling as usual have been toothless for RCB. Alzarri Joseph was very poor in the first three games and was replaced by Reece Topley, who so far has been decent. Yash Dayal too has been decent, while Glenn Maxwell till now arguably has been their best bowler. The rest, including Mohammad Siraj, has been pretty ordinary
EXPECTED LINE UP OF 12 : Virat Kohli, Faf du Plessis (c), Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Saurav Chauhan, Mahipal Lomror, Reece Topley, Mayank Dagar, Mohammed Siraj, Yash Dayal
PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT FOR:
Suryakumar Yadav:
Suryakumar Yadav has arguably been the best T20I batsman in the world in the last 2 years. After missing the first 3 matches, he got out for a duck against Delhi Capitals. He is not only a batter who is very dangerous with the bat and scores at a quick rate, but also very consistent. A big knock from him is likely soon.
Faf du Plessis:
Faf du Plessis have been one of the most consistent batsman in the IPL in recent years. However, he is yet to fire in this tournament. With the Wankhede being a paradise for batsman, today can be his day.
PITCH AND WEATHER REPORT:
In a match with small boundaries and a favorable batting pitch, expect an intense battle where scores could skyrocket. Both teams boast prominent power hitters, setting the stage for a barrage of sixes. Given the potential impact of dew, winning the toss might prompt the captain to opt for fielding first.
According to Accuweather, daytime temperatures will hover around 34 degrees Celsius, cooling down to 25 degrees Celsius at night. The humidity is expected to range between 65-75%, potentially causing dew formation, although there's no forecast for rainfall.
INTERESTING STATS AND FACTS:
In head to head contests, MI have won 18, while RCB have won 14. Since 2020, RCB have won 5 of the 7 games between them. At the Wankhede, its 7-3 in favour of MI.
Glenn Maxwell has a strike rate of 178.02 at the Wankhede
In RCB VS MI encounters, Virat Kohli has scored the most runs(852). For MI, Rohit Sharma leads the chart with 574 runs.
Ishan Kishan(99) has the highest scrore by a MI batsman against RCB.
Jasprit Bumrah(24) has the most no. of wickets in MI-RCB encounters.
MATCH DETAILS:
Time: 7:30 PM IST
Venue: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
Live broadcast: Star Network
Live streaming: JioCinema App
DREAM 11 TEAM:
