In tonight's Indian Premier League (IPL) match in Dubai, the two IPL firepowers will square off. Both teams are hoping for their first win since the IPL 2021 resumed in UAE. Royal Challengers Bangalore's (RCB) failure to capitalise on their strong start in the event resulted in the worst net run rate despite being in the third place in tournament standings with 10 points. In addition, they have lost all seven of their previous IPL matches in the UAE. Mumbai Indians (MI), who are infamous for their poor starts, have also struggled so far in the competition. With only 8 points, they are in sixth place.
So far, both RCB and MI have struggled to bat in the middle overs. In the middle-overs, their strike rates of 112.14 and 120.78 respectively re the second and third-lowest in the IPL so far.
Head-to-head
MI, a five-time IPL champion, has won 17 of the 28 games they've played against Kohli's team. RCB, on the other hand, has only won 10 games against Rohit Sharma's side. In their most recent meeting, the match went down to the last ball, with RCB winning by two wickets.
Injury updates and player availability
Hardik Pandya, who hasn't played in the last two games, could return to the MI eleven, according to Zaheer Khan. Hardik's presence will provide a huge boost for the middle order as he can accelerate and finish the match.
Battles to keep an eye on
Virat Kohli vs Jasprit Bumrah
Kohli has faced 80 deliveries from Bumrah and has scored 115 runs at a strike rate of 128.8. Despite having a decent strike rate of 143.8, the fast bowler has dismissed him four times during his IPL career.
With 21 wickets from 16 matches at an economy rate of 7.48, Bumrah is the second-highest wicket-taker versus RCB in the IPL.
AB de Villiers vs Krunal Pandya
The left-arm spinner has dismissed Mr. 360 four times and conceded just 51 runs off 47 balls at an average of 12.8. In IPL, the left-arm spinner has thwarted ABD multiple times. Sharma is fully aware of this match-up, and he may throw Krunal the ball as soon as AB walks in to bat. However, it is not to be forgotten that the Proteas batsman is the third-highest run-getter versus MI in the IPL with 774 runs at a strike rate of 147.70 from 24 matches.
Jasprit Bumrah vs Glenn Maxwell
Not only in internationals, but even in the IPL, the big show has struggled against Bumrah. Maxwell has only scored 39 runs from 33 deliveries, and Bumrah has scalped him four times. The Australian batter would be cautious when facing Bumrah in the tonight's clash.
Rohit Sharma vs Harshal Patel
The current purple cap holder has his tail up against the MI skipper. The MI opener has manged to score only 24 runs from 19 balls he has faced against Patel. Kohli would be expecting the pacer to replicate what he has done in the past.
Kieron Pollard vs Yuzvendra Chahal
In his IPL career, the leggie has dismissed the Caribbean all-rounder four times. On the other hand, Pollard has a strike rate of 160.5 and has scored 69 runs off 43 balls against Chahal. In the middle overs, it will be a big contest between the two as numbers show Pollard does not hold back either despite falling to Chahal several times.
Predicted Playing XIs
RCB: Virat Kohli (c), Devdutt Padikkal, KS Bharat (wk), Glenn Maxwell, AB de Villiers, Tim David, Kyle Jamieson, Shahbaz Ahmed, Harshal Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammed Siraj
MI: Rohit Sharma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Trent Boult, Adam Milne, Jasprit Bumrah, Rahul Chahar
