IPL 2022: Mumbai Indians are looking for their first win as they face Kolkata Knight Riders tonight. KKR on the other hand will go top of the table with a win.
Record Champions Mumbai Indians have had a slow start to their campaign this season.
In the first match vs Delhi Capitals, they were unable to defend 177 whereas against Rajasthan Royals, MI succumbed to a 23 run defeat.
Jos Buttler scored the first century of the tournament vs Mumbai Indians.
MI’s bowling has lacked the attacking intent we generally associate them with. With Joffra Archer still far from his first game, MI will need to find a solution quick.
As for batting, there are a lot of positives. Especially the 2 left handers in Ishan Kishan and Tilak Varma.
The two have showcased their talent with the bat in both the matches so far.
MI batting will be boosted by the return of Suryakumar Yadav. The Indian was retained by MI for INR 8 crore.
Anmolpreet Singh has failed to kicked on in both the matches, so it will be interesting to see who will play the number 3 role tonight.
As for KKR, they have been boosted by the return of Australia Test skipper Pat Cummins. Cummins was away representing Australia against Pakistan and missed 3 games for his side. Cummins was under contractual obligation with the CA for not playing the IPL before 5th April. Same reason why Maxwell couldn’t feature for RCB yesterday.
But now, Cummins is ready and will be raring to go.
Again a batting friendly wicket with something there for the bowlers as well. With powerful and talented batsmen in both teams, we expect it to be a high scoring affair.
Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma(C), Ishan Kishan(wk), Suryakumar Yadav/ Anmolpreet Singh, Tilak Varma, Tim David, Kieron Pollard, Daniel Sams/ Fabien Allen, Murugan Ashwin, Basil Thampi/ Jaydev Unadkat, Jasprit Bumrah, Tymal Mills.
Kolkata Knight Riders: Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer(C), Nitish Rana, Sheldon Jackson(wk), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Pat Cummins, Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy.
Mumbai Indians
Ishan Kishan: The Indian has been in outstanding form with the bat. He has scored runs all around the park. He was level on runs with Orange Cap holder Jos Buttler before the Englishman took it back with a 70 run knock against RCB, yesterday. It will be a tough match up when Kishan comes up against a bowling attack full of stars – Cummins, Umesh Yadav, Southee, Chakaravarthy and Narine. Let’s see how he will fare against them.
Kieron Pollard: With a few blows under his belt in the last match, Kieron Pollard would be much more confident with the bat. He will have to be in top form if MI were to post or chase a high total.
Jasprit Bumrah: The Indian pacer found some form in the previous match. His figures read 4 overs, 3/17 in a match where all his teammates disappeared all over the park. With KKR struggling a bit with batting, MI will look to their talisman to provide crucial breakthroughs and keep Andre Russell quiet.
Kolkata Knight Riders
Ajinkya Rahane: The Indian has looked in great knick in this years Tata IPL. KKR will hope for a good start from Rahane and hope he can carry on for as long as possible before Russell and Narine are sent in for the slog overs.
Andre Russell: The hard hitting West Indian hardly hit the ball with the middle of his bat but still managed to score 70* with 8 sixes in it. If he does start middling the ball, we all know what will be in store tonight .i.e. Mumbai bowlers being smashed all over the ground. He will be the 1 wicket that Mumbai would want to get rid off as soon as possible.
Umesh Yadav: Having picked up a 4 fer in the last match against Punjab Kings, Umesh Yadav will be high on confidence. The Indian pacer has moved the ball both ways and has troubled the opening batsman in all the matches. He has picked up key wickets in the early overs to help KKR get the upper hand. With the middle order of Mumbai still struggling to score, getting rid of the in form openers would be crucial for KKR.
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