Mumbai Indians (MI) welcome Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday, April 30, 2023, in what is their first and only encounter this season, at least until the playoffs.
RR find themselves in a pretty comfortable position as the season heads into the final few weeks. In the eight games they have played, they have won five and lost three, with a net run rate (NRR) of +0.939.
In the previous match, they defeated Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by 32 runs, displaying an all-round performance in a pretty comfortable outing.
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MI, on the other hand, come into this game on the back of back-to-back defeats, against Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Gujarat Titans (GT), which has left them in the bottom-half of the IPL table in eighth position.
They have won just three games, but they are the only side in the league who have seven games remaining, which means they have enough time to trigger a turnaround of fortunes and push for a playoff spot.
Here’s a comprehensive guide on the key batsmen, bowlers, match-ups, and predicted lineups ahead of MI vs RR.
Predicted lineups for MI vs RR
MI: Rohit Sharma (C), Ishan Kishan (WK), Cameron Green, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Tim David, Nehal Wadhera, Jofra Archer, Piyush Chawla, Arjun Tendulkar, Jason Behrendorff
RR: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson (C & WK), Shimron Hetmyer, Dhruv Jurel, Jason Holder, Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Sandeep Sharma, Trent Boult
Best Batsmen from MI vs RR
Suryakumar Yadav (MI): Ever since he was dismissed for three straight golden ducks in the bilateral ODI series against Australia in March, SKY has had a dip in form. But in recent games, he has shown signs of returning back to the sort of form that made him the best T20 batsman on planet Earth in 2022.
Yashasvi Jaiswal (RR): Yashasvi Jaiswal is finally fulfilling the immense potential he displayed during his younger days, and is he just 21 years old! He is RR’s top scorer this season at 304 runs in eight innings, scoring three half-centuries and striking the ball at 147.57. RR will once again hope that the Mumbai southpaw provides a flying start at the top of the order.
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Jos Buttler (RR): Although the Englishman’s bat hasn’t managed to do the talking in the previous four innings – which include two ducks and an uncharacteristic 41-ball 40 innings – Mumbai Indians are one of Buttler’s favourite oppositions in the IPL. The dynamic opener has scored 467 runs in eight games against MI at a strike rate of 155.67. Given MI’s woes with the new ball this season, Buttler will hope to bounce back to form in style.
Best Bowlers from MI vs RR
Piyush Chawla (MI): This has been a redemption season for one of the most revered veterans of the IPL, Piyush Chawla. The wily leggie is joint-eighth on the Purple Cap list, accounting for 11 scalps at an average of 17.45, economy rate of 7.11, and a strike rate of 14.73. He has been the pick of the bowlers for MI and will once again be instrumental in the middle overs.
Trent Boult (RR): The former Mumbai Indians bowler will be licking his lips at the prospect of bowling against the underperforming opening pair of Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan. Rohit’s weaknesses against the left-arm bowlers with the new ball in their hands have been prevalent. Boult will fancy making early inroads.
Yuzvendra Chahal (RR): Chahal has an impressive record against the five-time IPL champions, picking up 25 wickets in 17 matches against his former team. The leg-spinner has picked up 12 wickets this season, striking every 15 balls.
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Key Battles from MI vs RR
Rohit Sharma vs Sandeep Sharma: Although we mentioned earlier that Rohit has a tendency to struggle against the new ball, particularly left-armers, his record against Sandeep Sharma is shambolic. The right-armer has troubled the MI skipper with his nagging accuracy and unpredictable swing. Sandeep has dismissed Rohit four times in the IPL, conceding just 37 runs off 42 balls against him.
Sanju Samson vs Piyush Chawla: Chawla has bowled 36 deliveries to the RR skipper in IPL, conceding 56 runs. However, he has also sent him back to the pavilion twice. This match-up is particularly intriguing because one hasn’t dominated the other. However, Chawla has been in great form, while Samson has average just 24.25 this season. It’ll be interesting to see who earns the bragging rights here.
