It was a disappointing start to their IPL 12 campaign for both Mumbai Indians and the Royal Challengers Bangalore. RCB were annihilated by Chennai Super Kings by 7 wickets after bowling them out for a meagre 70 runs. It was a spin paradise and the RCB batters had no answer in front of the spin trio of Harbhajan Singh, Imran Tahir and Ravindra Jadeja.
None of the batters could get going as Royal Challengers Bangalore kept losing wickets on a regular basis. Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers were snapped up by the veteran spinner Harbhajan Singh. Barring a knock of 28 from Parthiv Patel, not a single batsman managed to score in double digits. Hence the batting department will be an area of concern for Virat Kohli as RCB gear up to play their 2nd game against the Mumbai Indians at their home ground.
The Bangalore bowlers did a good job on a spinning track and took the match to the 18th over. Chennai was under no pressure what so ever but the RCB bowlers deserves some credit for taking the match to the 18th over. The pitch was very difficult to bat on but wasn’t unplayable under any stress of imagination. 71 was never going to challenge the defending champions as they eventually won the match by 7 wickets and with 16 deliveries to spare.
Mumbai Indians will look to register their maiden victory of IPL 12
Mumbai Indians, on the other hand, will be upbeat to get back to winning ways. They have the record of starting poorly in the past. However given the fact that some of their players won’t be available towards the business end of the tournament, Mumbai will look to register some victories in their initial games. The three-time champions possess a strong side. However, the bowling department leaked runs against the Delhi Capitals which cost them the match in the end.
Rishabh Pant smashed the Mumbai bowlers all around the park en route to his knock of 78 of just 27 deliveries which included 7 fours and 7 sixes each. It was his exceptional knock which propelled Delhi Capitals to a mammoth score of 214 in their allotted 20 overs. It was always going to be a tough chase for Mumbai Indians. However, with a strong batting line-up, they would have back themselves to chase the total down.
The form of Yuvraj Singh will make MI management delighted. The southpaw who made his debut for Mumbai Indians in their opening game against the Delhi Capitals scored an impressive 53 of 35 deliveries which included 5 fours and 3 sixes. He showed glimpses of the old Yuvraj.
However, his knock wasn’t enough to get MI past the finishing line. The bowling department needs to pull their socks up and come back all guns blazing. The form of Jasprit Bumrah will be crucial to Mumbai’s chances in the tournament.
Date and Venue:
The match will be played on 28th March at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
Pitch report:
The Chinnaswamy is traditionally a graveyard for the bowlers. Even scores of 200 are easily chased in this stadium. 4 years back it was Kolkata Knight Riders who chased down 200 in the final of the tournament to lift the cup. The pitch is expected to be a belter of a wicket for the batsmen and a score of 180-190 should be par for the course. Hence we should expect a high scoring thriller tomorrow.
Weather Report:
Conditions in evening will be perfectly suited for a cricket match. Temperature is expected to hover around 23- 25 degrees. There is no threat of rain but you cannot predict anything in Garden City. Suddenly heavily showers might wash the game out. But as of now, it is expected to be a perfect day for a cricket match.
Match Prediction
Photo by: Vipin Pawar / IPL/ SPORTZPICS
Both teams started off with defeats in their opening game. Despite their defeats, both teams have some exceptional players in their ranks. Players like AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli will be the two key players for RCB like they have always been in the last couple of years. As a team, Mumbai Indians look the better side on paper with a better record and a good all-round team. Hence I will go with Mumbai Indians to win tomorrow’s game.