Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders, 51st Match

Friday, May 3, 2024, 7:30 PM

Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders

Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
 

HEAD TO HEAD
TotaL           : 32
MI  Won       :  23
KKR Won    :  9

Mumbai Indians have nothing to lose as they can reach a maximum of 14 points in the best-case scenario (of winning the remaining four games), an unlikely proposition for earning a knockout berth. It will, however, be another test for skipper Hardik Pandya, who has avoided bowling all four overs in all games (he bowled out his quota only in three of the 10 games he played), to prove his full fitness. But with nothing to lose, they can dangerously be the party-poopers for the Knight Riders, who have been one of the better teams this IPL season.

Knight Riders stand on the brink of playoffs but still with much work to do to seal it. Moreover, facing Mumbai Indians twice, against whom they've historically struggled, especially at the Wankhede, poses a difficult challenge. Despite maintaining the No 2 position consistently since the start of the IPL, securing two wins in their final five matches presents both an opportunity as well as a challenge. Their fate remains uncertain.

Mumbai Indians

Jasprit Bumrah should be the one to bowl up front to make an initial dent into the batting of KKR whose openers, Phil Salt and Sunil Narine, have been in fearsome form. They may bring in Kumar Kartikeya in place of one of the spinners.

Injuries/Unavailability: Have no reported case of an injury to any of their players.

Probable XI: Ishan Kishan (wk), Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya (c), Nehal Wadhera, Tim David, Mohammad Nabi, Gerald Coetzee, Kumar Kartikeya, Jasprit Bumrah (Impact Substitute: Naman Dhir)

Kolkata Knight Riders

 Mitchell Starc should be bowling to Rohit Sharma, who has shown vulnerability to left-arm pacers this season, having got out five times in 10 games.

Injuries/Unavailability: Have no injury concerns; Harshit Rana is unavailable due to a Code of Conduct breach.

Probable XI: Philip Salt (wk), Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer (c), Andre Russell, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Mitchell Starc, Vaibhav Arora, Anukul Roy, Varun Chakaravarthy. (Impact Substitute: Angkrish Raghuvanshi)