Hardik Panyda’s Mumbai Indians (MI) will be looking to jumpstart their campaign when they take on Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 on April 1. Mumbai will have the advantage of playing at home ground in Wankhede as they look to shake off the loss in first two games. MI are currently at the bottom of the points table of the 10-team event.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Mumbai lost the first match in Pandya’s homecoming at Ahmedabad against his previous team Gujarat Titans (GT). MI had failed to chase 169-run target against GT with Pandya scoring just 11 off 10 balls. In the next match against SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH), MI bowlers were taken to cleaners as Hyderabad posted IPL’s highest total of 277/8.
MI although posted 246/5 in 20 overs they ended up losing the game by 31 runs. Pandya’s innings of 24 off 20 balls faced a lot of heat due to slow strike rate in a high-octane chase.
While rest of the MI batters did get starts in the match against SRH, the batting still is a concern for MI. They’ll hope to turn it around at their home – a batting paradise.Â
Talking about RR, they currently are third on the points table with two wins in two games. Royals won their first match against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) by 20 runs before beating Delhi Capitals in the next one by 12 runs.
Speaking about the team, Luke Wood is likely to be back for MI in place of Kwena Maphaka. Wood had missed the last game against SRH due to a niggle. For RR, they are expected to continue with the same playing XI with Rovman Powell expected to be their impact sub if required during batting.
It’ll be Rohit Sharma’s first match in Mumbai after being replaced as captain by Hardik ahead of the ongoing season. While Pandya has been trolled by fans in two away games so far, it is yet to be seen how he’s treated by MI fans at home.
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