Mumbai Indians will return to their home ground to play against Rajasthan Royals after enduring two tough losses on the road. Wankhede Stadium has always been a happy hunting ground for Mumbai Indians, but there will be an added element of doubt when they return to their abode. New captain Hardik Pandya will look to bank on their home support with a win. They are up against Rajasthan Royals, a team that has not lost any match in IPL 2024 yet.
The Mumbai Indians enter this game coming off consecutive losses to the Sunrisers Hyderabad and Gujarat Titans. The bowlers for the Mumbai Indians gave away 277 runs against the SRH in their previous match. With 523 runs scored in the game, they reached 246 in the chase, making the match the highest run total ever.
The Rajasthan Royals have won both of their games with great ease. They won by 20 runs after scoring 193 runs against LSG. They won by a score of 12 runs against DC. RR has not yet participated in an outside game, but MI has not yet participated in a game at home. It’s going to be their first away game. RR is among the fewest teams to have outperformed MI in the season since 2018. When they play MI at Wankhede Stadium, they will be hoping to keep things the same.
Mumbai Indians: Luke Wood for Kwena Maphaka
Kwena Maphaka was hammered all over the park by SRH in Mumbai Indians’ last match. Although a talented bowler, Maphaka will take some time to get used to the rigours that a tournament such as IPL demands. His line and length wasn’t ideal vs SRH, leading to him conceding 66 runs in 4 overs without a wicket. Luke Wood, who joined MI as a replacement of Jason Behrendorff, played in the first match for MI. Although he wasn’t highly impressive, it can be anticipated that his experience will help him in getting the nod over Maphaka.
Rajasthan Royals: No changes expected
The Rajasthan Royals have made a strong start to their IPL 2024 campaign, winning both matches with comparative ease. Sanju Samson has been leading the team well, with experienced players such as Jos Buttler or Ravichandran Ashwin helping out in the cause as well. It is unlikely that Rajasthan Royals will tinker with a Playing XI that is playing so well as a unit.
MI vs RR Probable XI
MI Probable XI: Ishan Kishan (wk), Rohit Sharma, Naman Dhir, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya (c), Tim David, Gerald Coetzee, Shams Mulani, Piyush Chawla, Jasprit Bumrah, Luke Wood.
RR Probable XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson (c & wk), Riyan Parag, Shimron Hetmyer, Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Trent Boult, Yuzvendra Chahal, Sandeep Sharma, Avesh Khan.
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