TACTICAL PREVIEW
Follow UsThere has hardly been a match between Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians in Indian Premier League which didn’t move beyond the hype. For every Mumbai strike, there has been a better Rajasthan retaliation - so much so that, when both sides take on each other, recent form has hardly ever mattered.
Would this be different this season? In the first-round clash in Mumbai, Trent Boult and Yuzvendra Chahal bowled Mumbai out of the game, so much so that despite Akash Madhwal's best efforts, Mumbai were handed a six-wicket loss. Since then, the fortunes of the Royals are on an upward swing as the side have registered six wins in seven games whereas Mumbai Indians have managed just three wins from seven clashes.
While Rajasthan have been super dominant with both bat and ball, with the likes of Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag and Yuzvendra Chahal delivering for them game after game, Mumbai have blown hot and cold in the batting department. However, since the return of Suryakumar Yadav, some balance has been restored in the middle order and as a result, Mumbai have won three of their last four clashes.
However, for them to essentially have an upper hand, a cocktail is very much needed once again in Jaipur - a city where history transcends beyond its natural phenomena to become an ethereally perfect concoction. Can Mumbai take inspiration from the city's art to pummel their blue canvas?
RR vs MI Head-to-Head
Overall - Games 30 | RR 14 | MI 16
In Jaipur - Games 8 | RR 6 | MI 2
Venue details
Batters are walking on a silver platter in the IPL 2024 across all venues and Jaipur has fairly contributed to the trend, having an average first-innings score of 189 runs, which is also the average first-innings winning score at the venue.
Pacers have had better days in Jaipur than spinners, having taken 66.7% of wickets at an average of 39.5 as compared to spinners’ overall average of 44.1. Spinners, however, have had a better economy rate, having given away 8.7 runs per over as against 9.7 by the pacers.
Weather forecast
In Jaipur, it’s never pleasant in summer. But there is no rain prediction to worry about for April 22, 2024 (Monday), but the humidity factor will be telling. According to Accuweather, there might be some north-western wind flowing in the direction of Jaipur, that may aid the pacers.
Things to watch out for
Jaiswal’s uncharacteristic struggle against pacers
Yashasvi Jaiswal has built his T20 legend on the basis of how he tackles both pacers and spinners with ease - but this IPL has come as an aberration. The Mumbaikar has found himself struggling to put away the fast bowlers, having been dismissed by them on all seven occasions this season.
After being one of the leading batters in the first six overs for the last couple of seasons, Jaiswal has failed miserably in surviving the opening burst, leading to Sanju Samson and Riyan Parag to save the Royals more often than not. Among players with a minimum of five innings inside the powerplay, Jaiswal’s powerplay average of 17.5 is only worse than Devdutt Padikkal and Wriddhiman Saha.
He has especially been troubled by the back of length deliveries - a length where he has been dismissed thrice this season. With Mumbai Indians having bowlers like Jasprit Bumrah and Gerald Cotezee, Jaiswal can’t expect any freebies.
Can the real Hardik Pandya please stand up?
After the injury-forced layoff, Hardik Pandya had a lot to prove, especially keeping an eye on the T20 World Cup 2024, but it seems like the all-rounder is slipping away in the race. One of the premier all-rounders in T20s, the Mumbai Indians skipper has just 141 runs at a strike rate of 146.88 while picking four wickets at an average of 41.25. They are not very encouraging numbers.
Pandya has faced just eight short balls this season but ended up giving his wicket four times already. His struggle against pace, a trait that seemed to have gone away in the last few years, has resurfaced once again, making him vulnerable.
For him to help Mumbai Indians revive their fortune and reduce their dependency on Jasprit Bumrah to pull off a miracle every now and then, Pandya holding his end of the bargain has become a necessity. Beyond that, there’s a T20 World Cup selection quandary to be worried about too.
Probable XIs
With Samson keeping wickets, there’s nothing wrong with Jos Buttler as an impact player. But then the Royals can plan to bring Nandre Burger into the side ahead of Rovman Powell.
RR XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson (c & wk), Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer, Nandre Burger, Ravichandran Ashwin, Trent Boult, Avesh Khan, Kuldeep Sen, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jos Buttler (IP)
Don’t expect any changes to Mumbai Indians line-up.
MI XI: Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya (c), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Mohammad Nabi, Gerald Coetzee, Shreyas Gopal, Jasprit Bumrah, Akash Madhwal (IP)
Telecast and streaming details
The match will be live on Star Sports Network and live-streamed on Jio Cinema. The game will start at 7:30 PM, with the toss happening at 7 PM.
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