IPL 2021: Match Preview, Mumbai Indians vs Royal Challengers Bangalore

The 14th edition of the Indian Premier League kicks off on 9th April, where Royal Challengers Bangalore will take on defending champions Mumbai Indians in the 1st match at MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai.

Image By: Asia Cricket

Match Number: 1st match of IPL 2021.

Match Between: Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Mumbai Indians (MI)

Venue: MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai.

Timing: Friday, 9th April 2021, 7:30 PM IST

Squads:

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Virat Kohli(c), Devdutt Padikkal, AB de Villiers(w), Glenn Maxwell, Mohammed Azharuddin, Daniel Christian, Washington Sundar, Kyle Jamieson, Navdeep Saini, Mohammed Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kane Richardson, Harshal Patel, Adam Zampa, Sachin Baby, Srikar Bharat, Pavan Deshpande, Rajat Patidar, Finn Allen, Suyash Prabhudessai, Shahbaz Ahmed.

Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma(c), Ishan Kishan(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, James Neesham, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Rahul Chahar, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah, Piyush Chawla, Dhawal Kulkarni, Saurabh Tiwary, Aditya Tare, Adam Milne, Chris Lynn, Jayant Yadav, Anmolpreet Singh, Quinton de Kock, Anukul Roy, Mohsin Khan, Arjun Tendulkar, Marco Jansen, Yudhvir Singh.

Team News:

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Devdutt Padikkal has resumed training after recovering from Covid-19 and could be available for the opening match. RCB will also be without Finn Allen and Adam Zampa, who are yet to complete their quarantine period upon arriving in India. Shahbaz Nadeem could get a chance in this match.

Probable XI: Devdutt Padikkal, Virat Kohli (c), Glenn Maxwell, AB de Villiers, Mohammad Azharuddin/Rajat Patidar, Daniel Christian, Washington Sundar, Kyle Jamieson, Navdeep Saini, Mohammad Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal.

Mumbai Indians: As Quinton de Kock came to India on a charter flight following the Covid norms, he might play in the opening game. Mumbai Indians can play with an additional spinner.

Probable XI: Quinton de Kock (wk), Rohit Sharma(c), Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Nathan Coulter-Nile/Jayant Yadav, Rahul Chahar, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah.

Some Facts: 

1. Royal Challengers Bangalore’s win percent of 37.04 against Mumbai Indians is the second-worst for them against any team. The worst win percent rate is 34.62 against Chennai Super Kings.

2. Mumbai Indians have won 8 of their last 10 meetings with Royal Challengers Bangalore.

3. The strike rate of Virat Kohli at Chennai is 111.49.

4. Mumbai Indians' top order has a comparably low scoring rate in Chennai. Ishan Kishan has a strike rate of 90.32, whereas Rohit Sharma has a strike rate of 119.69.