Royal Challengers Bangalore will clash against the defending champions Mumbai Indians in what will mark the 10th match of the IPL 2020. RCB will come into the match after a huge loss in the hands of Kings Xl Punjab and will want to leave that behind coming into this much tougher matchup. Mumbai Indians were defeated by their arch rivals- CSK in the opener but bounced back against the KKR. Rohit Sharma and Co. will be hoping they can continue their winning momentum.
Royal Challengers Bangalore had one of their worst matches in the IPL history after losing to the Punjabi team by a whopping 97 runs. The team looked clueless as K.L Rahul took all the RCB bowlers for a ride around the park. The scoreboard pressure took over the RCB team as the youngster Devdutt Paddikkal and captain Virat Kohli were dismissed cheaply. Which meant it was all up to AB de Villiers to take them home. But the score meant too many even for the best to chase down.
Mumbai Indians had a clinical performance against the KKR after their captain Rohit Sharma led from the front by scoring 80 of 54 balls, which also earned him the Man of the Match. The bowlers too did a very good job and MI would be happy to see Bumrah pick up a few wickets which could mean the star pacer might be back to his prime.
Royal Challengers after winning their first match against SRH had to face one of the biggest defeats in their second. While, Mumbai Indians as usual have started to get the hang of things. Can the Team India captain stop Rohit Sharma and Co.?
Head to Head
Matches played- 27, RCB- 9, Mumbai Indians- 18, N/R- 0
Team News
Both RCB and MI seem to be from injury concerns. Said that, RCB do have problems to address with their bowling as their key players have been taken for a ride by the opposition. Virat Kohli could try out Isuru Udana in place of the South African Dale Steyn.
Also, Josh Philippe has not had a great time with the bat and for that reason they could get Parthiv Patel to do the job behind the stumps and have the English star all-rounder in place of the out of form Umesh Yadav.
MI are likely to play the winning combination that won the game against KKR.
Pitch and Conditions
While we saw Abu Dhabi and Sharjah be a paradise for the batsmen. The pitch in Dubai is slightly on the lower side as compared the other two. The batsman has to be cautious while playing the big shots as the pitch as seen in the last matches has the tendency to hold up.
The conditions are once again expected to be on the clear side as expected in the desert. The temperature is expected to be hovering around the 31 degree mark, which is slightly lower than the usual recorded temperature. Though the humidity is reported to be on the higher side, as it is expected to tease the 70% mark later in the evening.
Probable Playing Xl
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB): Devdutt Padikkal, Aaron Finch, Virat Kohli (c), AB de Villiers, Parthiv Patel(wk), Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Navdeep Saini, Moeen Ali, Isuru Udana, Yuzvendra Chahal
Mumbai Indians (MI): Rohit Sharma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Saurabh Tiwary, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Rahul Chahar, James Pattinson, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah
Key Battles
Devdutt Padikal (RCB) vs Jasprit Bumrah (MI)
The 20-year old Devdutt Padikal made it to the headlines in his very debut by scoring a classy 56 of 42 balls against the SRH which won RCB the match. The second match though he could not get going as the score of 206 by KXIP seemed a huge task and even made the star RCB batsmen fail. The left-hander is a player of high potential.
On the other side we have one of the world’s best bowlers- Jasprit Bumrah. We did see Padikal play the SRH bowlers with ease especially the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Rashid Khan. It could be great to see how the youngster makes him approach against a player like Jasprit Bumrah.
Will the Youngster treat Bumrah the same way he likes to treat the others? Or will the pin-point yorker of Bumrah prove too much for the youngster?
Suryakumar Yadav (MI) vs Yuzvendra Chahal (RCB)
Suryakumar Yadav is playing one of the key roles of anchoring the MI innings and seems to be doing a wonderful job. He is one of the many prodigies of the Indian premier League and has matured a long way from the pinch hitter he was. He has been playing some very classy sensible innings for the team and with the T20 WC coming up, the 30- year old will be eyeing a spot.
One of the weakest links of RCB ever since the club was formed has been their bowling. Said that, one bowler who has stood out has been Yuzvendra Chahal. The leggie has claimed over 100 wickets for the franchise and stands one of the highest wicket-takers in the tournament overall. Yadav is a very good player of spin like most of the Indian players but Chahal has been in great form and playing him off for the Right-hander especially on the slower Dubai pitch could be an exciting battle to watch.
Can the Anchor win the battle against the best bowler of the opposition?
Prediction
RCB like always have once again exposed their bowling weakness and have started to cost them the matches. Both Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers are yet to make meaningful contributions to their team. It definitely is too early in the tournament to make conclusions. But, with certain changes in the bowling line-up, RCB can definitely make a stronger impact.
Mumbai Indians now have the momentum they were looking for and will be looking to continue. Their captain Rohit Sharma as usual led from the front with a stunning 80 run knock. The team seems to be well settled now and getting past the four time champions would not be an easy task for the RCB.
Cricwizz predicts Mumbai Indians to win the match
