Nine days into this edition of the Indian Premier League and finally the excitement level has matched the expected level that should be for an IPL season. Indian skipper and heartthrob of millions across the globe, Virat Kohli is all set to make a comeback to competitive cricket after getting injured a month ago at Ranchi in the Test series against Australia. That news alone should get all the buzz going with the Royal Challengers Bangalore set to lock horns with Mumbai Indians.
Traditionally, the Rohit Sharma-led outfit has enjoyed stupendous success at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, with their only loss here against the Royal Challengers, coming way back in 2013.
For Bangalore, though, Kohli’s addition should be a massive boost to the lineup as his leadership was dearly missed in the previous games. To add to that, his batting at the top is what makes him the best T20 batsman on the globe.
PREVIOUS ENCOUNTER:
Despite excelling in the year gone by, the Royal Challengers Bangalore were all at sea against their Mumbai counterparts, as they lost both the clashes. Their latest encounter was played in Bangalore and thanks to a disciplined bowling effort from the visitors, Virat Kohli’s men were restricted to a below par score of 151. KL Rahul while batting in the middle played an impact knock of 68 as he brought his team to some respectability.
With Mumbai’s top order looking sluggish, the hosts well fancied their chances till the 16th over, with the required run rate creeping beyond 10. The duo of Kieron Pollard and Jos Buttler however, were indifferent as they casually strolled to the target with 8 balls to spare.
Recent form this season:
RCB: L, W, L
MI: W, W, L
Talking Points:
There is no bigger talking point at the moment than skipper Virat Kohli returning to his cherished home. Kohli was a beast last season as he went on to amass 973 runs in the season with astronomical returns to his name. If he carries on bludgeoning oppositions, in the same manner, don’t be surprised a bit if he races his way to the top of the run charts again despite playing a few lesser games.
The move to drop Chris Gayle on a small ground like Indore was a disaster and reaped no dividends what so ever. If wiser heads are to prevail, the Jamaican should be on his way back into the team. The top 4 alone to win Royal Challengers the game, in the form of Gayle, Kohli, de Villiers and Kedar Jadhav.
RCB Predicted XI:
- V. Kohli (c), 2. C. Gayle 3. AB de Villiers 4. K. Jadhav (wk) 5. M. Singh 6. S. Watson 7. S. Binny 8. I. Abdullah 9. S. Aravind 10. Y. Chahal 11. T. Mills