Mumbai and RCB aim to break into the top four – T20 IPL 2024

Big picture: Beware of MI’s explosive middle order

When Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore first met in the opening week of IPL 2023 at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis had a 148-run opening stand as RCB hunted down 172 with considerable ease. While du Plessis and Kohli continue to churn out runs for their side, the lack of sizeable contributions from outside the top three and the safety-first approach of the top order has come into sharp focus.

There can be no room for conservative batting at the high-scoring Wankhede Stadium against a Mumbai Indians line-up that has Tim David, Cameron Green, Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan. They didn’t click on a slightly two-paced pitch in Chennai, but beware of Mumbai’s middle order at the Wankhede, especially if they chase. Mumbai have won four of their six matches while chasing this IPL.

However, the pressure continues to mount on Rohit Sharma, who has managed only five runs in his last four IPL innings at an average of 1.3 and a strike rate of 26. He dropped himself down to No.3 against CSK on Saturday, but ended up bagging another duck. Overall, nobody has more ducks in the IPL than Rohit (16). Can he break out of the funk on Tuesday?

Both Mumbai and RCB currently have ten points from as many games, and with the season approaching its pointy end, they will be desperate to rise above the mid-table jam.

The big question

Where should Rohit bat for MI?

179 votes

At the top

Float in the middle order

Team news: Will Tilak be fit?

Tilak Varma had missed Mumbai’s fixture against CSK on Saturday with an injury, according to Rohit. It remains to be seen if he has recovered sufficiently to play on Tuesday.

Form guide

Mumbai Indians: LWWLL (last five matches, most recent first)
Royal Challengers Bangalore: LWLWW

Impact Player strategy

Mumbai could bring in one of their spinners as an Impact Player in place of Suryakumar when they bowl, or vice versa.

Mumbai probable XII: 1 Ishan Kishan (wk), 2 Rohit Sharma (capt), 3 Cameron Green, 4 Suryakumar Yadav, 5 Tilak Varma/Tristan Stubbs, 6 Nehal Wadhera, 7 Tim David, 8 Piyush Chawla, 9 Hrithik Shokeen/Kumar Kartikeya/Raghav Goyal, 10 Jofra Archer, 11 Akash Madhwal, 12 Arjun Tendulkar/Arshad Khan

RCB are likely to start with Kedhar Jadhav if they bat first and replace him with Harshal Patel once he’s dismissed or at the innings break.

RCB probable XII: 1 Virat Kohli, 2 Faf du Plessis, 3 Glenn Maxwell, 4 Mahipal Lomror, 5 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 6 Anuj Rawat/Shahbaz Ahmed, 7 Kedar Jadhav, 8 Wanindu Hasaranga, 9 Harshal Patel, 10 Karn Sharma/Vyshak Vijaykumar, 11 Josh Hazlewood, 12 Mohammed Siraj

Stats and Trivia

Legspinner Piyush Chawla has a good record against du Plessis in T20 cricket. Chawla has dismissed him twice in seven innings while conceding only 52 off 55 balls.

Suryakumar has dominated Mohammed Siraj in T20 cricket, hitting him for 48 runs off 22 balls at a strike rate of 218.18 while being dismissed once.

Kohli has faced 64 balls from Jofra Archer and is yet to be dismissed by him in T20 cricket. He has scored 85 runs at a strike rate of 133.

David hits a boundary every 3.3 balls at the Wankhede. He has smashed 21 sixes and nine fours in 98 balls at the venue in the IPL.

Pitch and conditions

Expect another easy-paced, bash-through-the-line pitch at the Wankhede. Teams chasing have won three of the four games so far at the venue this season. The weather is expected to be fine for the duration of the match.

Deivarayan Muthu is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo

Source: ESPN Crickinfo