Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians — two teams with contrasting fortunes — will face off in an Indian Premier League group league fixture at the DY Patil Stadium on Saturday.
While five-time champion Mumbai Indians is out of the playoff race with eight losses from as many games, Rajasthan Royals is on a three-match winning streak and aiming to surge ahead.
Tribute to Warne
And, with Royals celebrating the life and contributions of its only IPL title-winning captain Shane Warne, who passed away in Thailand last month, during this game, a win here would be a perfect tribute to the Australian legend.
For the Royals, a lot will depend on Jos Buttler, captain Sanju Samson and Shimron Hetmyer. While Buttler has hammered three centuries in the tournament so far, Sanju and Hetmyer, too, have played their parts well and the fact that Riyan Parag is back in form will give the Royals a lot of confidence.
Its bowling department looks well-oiled with spin duo R. Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal around. Featuring for a new franchise this season, Chahal has been the highest wicket-taker so far with 18 scalps, and pacers Trent Boult and Prasidh Krishna, too, have had an impact.
Mumbai Indians, meanwhile, have faltered in every department. Captain Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan have struggled, and even though Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma and Dewald Brewis have had their moments, those were not enough.
Bowling, too, has been a concern as Jasprit Bumrah hasn’t had enough backing from Jaydev Unadkat and Daniel Sams, forcing the management to rope in Dhawal Kulkarni.
