After losing their respective first matches, both the teams will be hoping to turn the tables in their favour as Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) face Mumbai Indians (MI) on Thursday at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Skippers Virat Kohli (6 runs) and Rohit Sharma (14 runs), who failed with the bat in their respective first matches, will be eager to get that first victory of the season.
RCB had a nightmare start in the first match of this IPL season, as they were bundled out for 70 by defending champions CSK. Though RCB lost the game by seven wickets, their bowlers put up a fight till the end. Yuzvendra Chahal was exceptional with his flippers as he conceded just 6 runs in his quota of 4 overs. Moeen Ali and young Navdeep Saini were also impressive. But their small total proved detrimental to the team's cause.
Apart from Parthiv Patel (29), no other batsman could even reach double digits. RCB’s batsmen were guilty of poor shot selection as they holed out more than often going for glory. shots. It is clearly evident that someone amongst Kohli or AB de Villers needs to anchor the innings and carry till the end. With the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Mitchell McClenaghan and Ben Cutting in the opposition, RCB boys will have to pull up their socks and bat sensibly.
On the other side, MI were completely demolished by Rishabh Pant in their opening match against Delhi Capitals which resulted in a 37-run defeat. The flamboyant left-handed batsman scored an unbeaten 27-ball 78 as he smashed Mumbai bowlers all over the park
Skipper Rohit Sharma will hope to put that game behind and get their campaign kick-started in the positive note against RCB. The MI batting also looked pretty ordinary, except for Yuvraj Singh who scored 53. MI, with the likes of Kieron Pollard, Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Quinton de Kock, will be aiming to exploit the smallish of the Bengaluru ground to the maximum.
MI camp will be definitely boosted as strike bowler Lasith Malinga was cleared by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) to take part in the IPL. SLC had earlier made a statement that the World Cup hopefuls will not be allowed to feature in the IPL as they had to compulsorily compete in their Super Provincial One-day domestic tournament from April 4 to 11. The verdict had forced the legendary fast bowler to make himself unavailable for the Mumbai-based franchise during the initial half of the tournament.
However, according to ESPNcricinfo, the SLC has decided to relax the restriction after a few calls from BCCI. Ashantha de Mel, Chief Selector, SLC, said that as Malinga’s place in the squad was confirmed, he is free to take part in the IPL. He is also the highest wicket-taker in IPL (154 wickets in 110 matches). The 35-year-old fast bowler is making a comeback to the team after he had been a part of the Mumbai Indians’ coaching staff last year.
The battle will also be between the ICC ’s World Number 1 ODI batsman Kohli vs ICC World Number 1 ODI bowler Bumrah.
Bumrah seemed to have injured his shoulder on the last ball of the Delhi innings when he dived towards his left off his own bowling to stop the batsman from taking a run. Chances of him playing tomorrow are bleak considering the upcoming World Cup. Nonetheless, he was seen training yesterday.
With both at the peak of their careers and the masters of their respective art, it's to be seen who will have the last laugh. With iconic supergiants on both the sides, and Bengaluru having a rich history of high scoring nail bitters, fans will be in for a cricketing spectacle.
Head-to-Head and Key numbers:
- RCB have faced MI 25 times in IPL, with the Mumbai-based team winning 16 of those matches. RCB have emerged victorious 9 times.
- RCB’s best position in IPL: Runners-up in 2011 and 2016
- MI’s best position in IPL: Winners in 2013, 20115 and 2017
- Highest individual score in this fixture: AB de Villers (RCB) - 133* in Mumbai (2015)
- Best bowling figures in this fixture: Samuel Badree (RCB) - 4/9 in Bengaluru (2017)
- Most runs in this fixture: Virat Kohli (RCB) - 629
- Most wickets in this fixture: Harbhajan Singh (MI) - 22. Harbhajan was a part of MI camp from 2008 to 2017, then joined CSK last year.
When and how to watch:
Date: March 28 (Thursday), 2019
Time: 8 PM IST
Venue: M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru
TV Guide: Star Sports Network
Live Streaming: Hotstar
Expected Eleven:
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Virat Kohli (Captain), AB de Villiers, Parthiv Patel (wicket-keeper), Shimron Hetmyer, Shivam Dube, Umesh Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammed Siraj, Moeen Ali, Colin de Grandhomme, Navdeep Saini.
Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Jasprit Bumrah, Ben Cutting, Mayank Markande, Mitchell McClenaghan, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Yuvraj Singh, Suryakumar Yadav, Quinton de Kock (wicket-keeper).
Squads:
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Virat Kohli (Captain), AB de Villiers, Parthiv Patel (wicket-keeper), Marcus Stoinis, Shimron Hetmyer, Shivam Dube, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Washington Sundar, Umesh Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammed Siraj, Heinrich Klaasen, Moeen Ali, Colin de Grandhomme, Pawan Negi, Tim Southee, Akshdeep Nath, Milind Kumar, Devdutt Padikkal, Gurkeerat Singh, Prayas Ray Barman, Kulwant Kejroliya, Navdeep Saini, Himmat Singh.
Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Jason Behrendorff, Jasprit Bumrah, Rahul Chahar, Ben Cutting, Pankaj Jaiswal, Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Siddhesh Lad, Evin Lewis, Lasith Malinga, Mayank Markande, Mitchell McClenaghan, Adam Milne, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Anukul Roy, Rasikh Salam, Yuvraj Singh, Anmolpreet Singh, Barinder Sran, Aditya Tare, Suryakumar Yadav, Jayant Yadav and Quinton de Kock (wicket-keeper).
