MI vs RR Match Preview: The battle of familiar foes awaits

When Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians lock horns in the IPL, one thing is guaranteed - unlimited entertainment!

"Don\"t be afraid to be authentic, not in terms of skills, but in terms of who you are with this franchise."

Kumar Sangakkara\"s inspiring words before our first match of IPL 2022 had a special message for everyone at the Royals. His words, coupled with a brilliant on-field performance gave us just the start we needed and heaps of momentum to carry. It is with this inspiration and winning momentum that we now march onto our next challenge, meeting old rivals in a new form.

Match Details

MI vs RR - 02 April 2022

Dr. DY Patil Sports Academy (Navi Mumbai)

3:30 PM IST

This will be the season’s first day game at the DY Patil Stadium. Among all the three venues in the city, this venue has the most spin-friendly pitch on offer. In the IPL, spinners have been taking wickets here at an average of 18.7 and an economy of 7 runs per over, while the average first-innings score has been a rather modest 149. Teams playing here have usually chosen to bowl first, with 12 of the 19 results going in the favour of the chasing side.

Over the years, the Royals have had some memorable encounters against Mumbai Indians. Whether it was our consecutive double-win streak in 2018 and 2019, or Mumbai\"s dramatic finish in 2014, the two sides enjoy facing off and seem to bring out the best in each other. With shuffled squads and renewed strategies this time around, it\"ll be interesting to see how things play out on the field.

Both teams have played 24 matches against each other in the IPL so far. We have emerged victorious on 11 occasions, while Mumbai are slightly ahead with 13 wins. The 2021 season saw Mumbai winning both games against us.

Royals to watch

Jos Buttler

41, 70, 89, 94* - If these scores scream anything, It\"s the fact that Jos Buttler relishes batting against Mumbai. The opener\"s last four innings against them have propelled his batting average to 75 - the highest for any batter against Mumbai in the IPL with a minimum of 5 innings played. Overall, he has racked up 300 runs in just 6 matches against them.

Yuzvendra Chahal

The leg-spinner tends to run through Mumbai\"s heavy batting order when he gets the chance. In 6 matches against them, Chahal has picked 12 wickets, including 4 instances of taking at least 2 wickets in the game. In T20s overall, he has troubled the likes of Kieron Pollard (5 dismissals), Ishan Kishan (3 dismissals) and Suryakumar Yadav (2 dismissals) with his wily variations.

Team News

Nathan Coulter-Nile walked off with an injury at the start of the 20th over in our match against Sunrisers Hyderabad. If the Aussie pacer isn’t match fit, the Royals will still have plenty of strong options - from all-rounder Jimmy Neesham for batting depth to the left-arm pace of Obed McCoy for extra pace. Barring Coulter-Nile, the rest of the team looks well-balanced and settled, but it remains to be seen if the team management make any changes based on the opposition.

So, buckle up for a Saturday afternoon that promises yet another cracking contest. With star-studded batting line-ups and clever bowling units on display, it’s going to be an exciting battle of one-upmanship that you wouldn’t want to miss!