Royal Challengers Bangalore will clash against Mumbai Indians in match number 39 of the Indian Premier League 2021, this Sunday. The match would be played at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium and would prove a turning point for both teams, who are yet to record a win in the second leg of the IPL.
Mumbai Indians, who are the defending champions, have made a dismal start to the second phase of the UAE leg in IPL 2021 and one more loss could very well put their qualification chances in further jeopardy. Royal challengers Bangalore though are in a much better position placing themselves third on the table, with Mumbai Indians hanging in sixth.
The reverse fixture was the opening match of the 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League with the Bangalore franchise winning the match in the penultimate ball by two wickets. Earlier in the match, Harshal Patel shone claiming 5 wickets, with AB de Villers seeing out the match with a tremendous effort with the bat.
RCB v MI IPL 2021 | Build Up
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) September 25, 2021
We’re right back into action tomorrow and a chance to grab ✌🏻 important points. Here’s everything you need to know about the heavyweight clash against MI. #PlayBold #WeAreChallengers #IPL2021 pic.twitter.com/5wVV9nb4Ds
Can Royal Challengers Bangalore claim a victory to consolidate their position in the playoffs? Or can Rohit and co arrest their slide to ensure a thrilling finish for a spot in the playoffs?
Match Toss Time: 17:30 Local (19:00 IST)
Match Start Time: 18:00 Local (19:30 IST)
Match Venue: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai
Head to Head
Matches Played: 28, RCB: 11, MI: 17
Weather Conditions and pitch
Team News
RCB suffered losses and will be on the lookout to make some changes. They possess the luxury to bring in Jamieson in place of Hasaranga, who has looked ineffective in the last two matches, and also Shabaz Ahmed for Navdeep Saini with the middle order looking especially weak.
Mumbai Indians also will vary with skipper Rohit Sharma not in peak fitness form and Hardik Pandya still not available. But the management is resting assured in the quality of the squad and the only question that remains is off when they begin to perform and hit top form.
Probable Playing XI
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB): Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Srikar Bharat, Glenn Maxwell, AB de Villiers, Tim David, Shahbaz Ahmed, Kyle Jamieson, Mohammed Siraj, Harshal Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal
Mumbai Indians (MI): Quinton de Kock, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Kieron Pollard, Saurabh Tiwary, Krunal Pandya, Adam Milne, Rahul Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult
Must-Picks
Royal Challengers Bangalore openers Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal look in good touch and much depends on them in terms of batting, with the rest failing to perform. In addition to these two, we also feel South African Quinton de Kock to play a vital knock along with his opening partner and Mumbai Indians' skipper Rohit Sharma.
'Qonsistent' de Kock wins the @MarriottBonvoy presents MI Player of the Week 🏆
— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) September 25, 2021
And many congratulations to Asma Khan who wins an autographed #MI jersey 👕#OneFamily #MumbaiIndians #IPL2021 @QuinnyDeKock69 pic.twitter.com/w26nOAzsxd
Key stats
#The RCB speedster Mohammad Siraj has been pretty economical this season and has bowled an impressive 87 dot balls this season. The 27-year old is just 6 balls away from leveling with Prasidh Krishna's tally of 93 dot balls this season.
#The big-hitting Kieron Pollard who has 15 sixes to his name finds himself short of 4 sixes to overtake this season's leading six-hitter KL Rahul, who has 18 sixes to his name. Are we in for a Pollard special on Sunday night?
#RCB's latest revelation Harshal Patel is cruising away in the race for the purple cap. The pacer has picked up 19 wickets in the 9 matches played this season and is well clear of Avesh Khan of DC, who has 15 wickets under his belt.
RCB vs MI fantasy team
Captain and Vice-Captain picks
Prediction
Two teams who are in desperate need of a win, the team that loses this encounter is likely to take a long slide in the table. The Bangalore side looks completely out of sorts except for the opening pair. While the 5-time champions Mumbai Indians too are not getting things to go in their favor. We feel the innings of the captains to play a vital role in this encounter and Rohit Sharma might just get the better of Kohli.
Cricwizz predicts Mumbai Indians to win the match
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