Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) will be locking horns with Mumbai Indians (MI) in the 18th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 at the MCA stadium in Pune. It will be the night match on the day of the doubleheader, Saturday. RCB has won two games out of the three games they have played so far and a win here will elevate them to the top half of the IPL 2022 points table. On the other hand, MI is yet to open their account in the season so far as they have lost all three games.
MI suffered losses to Delhi Capitals (DC), and Rajasthan Royals (RR), and their last loss came against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). Although the batters did well in the first innings, the bowled failed and KKR chased the target of 162 runs in 16 overs. On the other hand, RCB lost their season opener against Punjab Kings (PBKS) by a close margin and followed that with back-to-back wins against KKR and RR.
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The two old rivals have locked horns with each other 31 times in IPL so far and it is MI that has enjoyed the fair share of success against RCB with 19 wins. RCB also hold the edge in the last five meetings as they have won 3 games. So, we will be in for an interesting contest on Saturday afternoon as both teams need their maiden win of the season. As for the team combination, both teams may stick to the same 11 from their last match. Ahead of the key clash at the MCA stadium, we take a look at the three key player battles to watch out for.
#1 Ishan Kishan vs Mohammed Siraj
Ishan Kishan will be facing his previous foe who’s troubled him quite a bit in the past. Indian quick Mohammed Siraj has dismissed the young batter thrice in their previous encounters. Kishan’s last couple of games for Mumbai were run-filled with scores of 81* and 54 giving him the much-needed confidence to have a go against the RCB bowling unit tonight. This will be a classic contest of pace vs power in Pune.
#2 Rohit Sharma vs Wanindu Hasaranga
It’s mystery vs magic when Wanindu Hasaranga loads up to bowl against Rohit Sharma. He has never faced the skipper. Unleashing Hasarnaga in the powerplay might not be a bad idea considering he has dismissed Shamra quite a few times in the IPL. Sharma is yet to notch up a fifty in the 2022 edition, and this might be the game where he hits his straps.
#3 Jasprit Bumrah vs Faf du Plessis
Jasprit Bumrah may have been expensive for Mumbai in the first game against Delhi, but he bounced back with a three-wicket haul against Rajasthan. With RCB’s openers in a bit of a slump, he will be eager to prize out the top two and get the better of their skipper Faf du Plessis. The latter has managed to get off to starts but is yet to play the defining innings that is expected of him. How he fares against a fiery Bumrah remains to be seen.
