With the kind of team Mumbai Indians has, theoretically it looked rather improbable that they would have had no wins to their name after 3 matches. Interestingly, the results could have been the complete opposite as MI were smelling distance away from victory in all the three occasions but just could on cling on to the critical moments which have hurt them very badly in the tournament.
As a result, Mumbai lies at the rock bottom of points table. It was Dwayne Bravo’s brilliance in the first match, a last ball boundary from Billy Stanlake in the second and a Jason Roy special in the third match that has made the Mumbai Indians wait for their first win in the tournament. Against the Royal Challengers Bangalore, the Mumbai Indians would be desperate to get their first points on the board and will leave no stone unturned to taste success for the first time in the ongoing season.
Royal Challengers Bangalore have one win in three games and have had extreme performances in the tournament. Becoming the first unit to bowl out an opposition this season to conceding 217 against the Rajasthan Royals- RCB bowling has lacked stability and would look to get back on track- picking up wickets without conceding a lot many runs.
As always the RCB batting looks top-heavy and have very little or almost no international experience in the lower middle order which more often than not finishes the innings. RCB rely on their overseas batting duo of Brendon McCullum and Quinton de Kock and the stalwarts Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers. However, past them the likes of Sarfaraz Khan, Mandeep Singh, Pawan Negi and Washington Sundar do not have the experience of playing the role of designated finishers in the side.
Possibly Parthiv Patel or Manan Vohra can replace one of the overseas opener to allow an overseas all- rounder in the middle order. This could also aid the inconsistent bowling of the RCB side.
Rohit Sharma’s big knock is overdue and if the Hitman gets going at the Wankhede Stadium tonight, Mumbai Indians will look a far more balanced side and will feel much more confident about themselves. Suryakumar Yadav, Evin Lewis and Ishan Kishan will hope to continue their good form from the last encounter against the Delhi Daredevils.
For the RCB, Brendon McCullum has been quiet for the last couple of matches and can explode against the Mumbai bowlers. Virat and ABD have stacked unbelievable numbers at the Wankhede Stadium and if they produce something of a similar scale, Mumbai ‘s wait for their maiden win in the ongoing season will have to extend.
As far as bowling is concerned, one cannot dare to miss Mayank Markande who seems to be the find of the season so far. Also await the ABD vs Krunal Pandya battle, with Pandya clearly having the upper hand at the moment (4 dismissals in 32 balls).
Young Washington Sundar against the left handed Evin Lewis in the power play overs is another interesting battle lined up for the cricket lovers.
Expect nothing less than a high voltage clash from the two teams. Broadcast starts at 20:00 Hours (IST).
