The Mumbai Indians will host the Rajasthan Royals in the 66th game of the Indian Premier League this season. While the Rajasthan Royals are already out of the competition, the Mumbai Indians are almost through to the playoffs and only a string of permutations can push them out of the IPL this season.
Mumbai v Rajasthan odds:
The Mumbai Indians (4/11 at
Stan James) will be favourites to win this encounter but the last time they had played the Royals, they had been bowled out for a sub-100 score. Interestingly, after a good start to their campaign, the Mumbai Indians have also lost two in a row to shake their confidence up a bit.
The Royals (12/5 at
bet365), on the other hand, have had their captain embroiled in a big controversy and that would have had an effect on their play on the field. With the issue now sorted, it will be back to business for the Royals and they will look to bid Warne a farewell with a win. This is Warne’s last IPL game.
Ground and Pitch:
The last game at Wankhede had seen the Mumbai Indians struggle to chase down 130, losing the match in the process. Mumbai Indians captain Sachin Tendulkar was critical of the way the pitch had behaved and rest assured the curator would have taken note and a batting-friendly track would be on display for this game.
Player News:
The Mumbai Indians lost their previous couple of games thanks to their poor batting. Tendulkar (2/1 at
Boylesports) struggled through most part of the two games while Aiden Blizzard (4/1 at
BetFred) failed to build on the start that he had got in the tournament.
Interestingly, what the early loss of wickets also did was to allow someone like a Kieron Pollard (9/1 at
Paddy Power) some more time at the wicket. After a very sluggish start, Pollard’s form was a bit of a positive to come out for the Mumbai Indians from those games, something that the Royals will need to be wary of.
The Rajasthan Royals had, rather strangely, made six changes to their line-up in the previous game. Ross Taylor (9/2 at
Paddy Power) and Shane Watson (3/1 at
Blue Square) were dropped from the playing eleven, probably as a means of a kick up their backside, for their mediocre performance in the tournament. One senses that Watson could make a comeback into the side, while Jacob Oram (16/1 at
Blue Square) should continue to remain in the playing eleven in place of Taylor.
Prediction:
Mumbai Indians know that a win here will not only get them to the playoffs but also heighten their chances of ending in the top two positions in the points table.