The five-time champion Mumbai Indians did not start well in the second leg of IPL 2021, as they lost to Chennai Super Kings by 20 runs. They did a good job of pick up the wicket early on, but later in death overs, they conceded plenty of runs, which brought about their downfall. Rohit Sharma, who missed the last match due to a niggle, is likely to be back for this match.On the other hand, the Kolkata Knight Riders were stunning against RCB in their previous match, as they bowled Virat Kohli’s team out for just 92 runs. The Knights then chased the target with 10 overs still left in the game. This was one of the biggest victories in IPL in terms of balls remaining. Youngsters are doing great work for KKR at the moment.Match Details:Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Match 34Venue:Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu DhabiDate & Time: September 23rd at 7:30 PM IST, and at 6:00 PM local timeLive Streaming:Star Sports Network and Disney+HotstarPitch Report:The wicket is conducive for the bowlers, and we witnessed some terrific bowling performances from KKR bowlers against RCB on Monday. Having said that, the batters need to spend time at the crease to put a decent total on the board.Also Read- IPL 2021, MI vs KKR: It's Rohit Sharma vs Varun Chakravarthy as Mumbai Indians eye winProbable Playing XIs for MI vs KKR: Mumbai IndiansQuinton de Kock (wk), Rohit Sharma (c), Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Hardik Pandya / Saurabh Tiwary, Adam Milne, Rahul Chahar, Trent Boult, Jasprit BumrahKolkata Knight RidersShubman Gill, Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana, Rahul Tripathi, Eoin Morgan (c), Andre Russell, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Sunil Narine, Lockie Ferguson, Varun Chakravarthy, Prasidh KrishnaTop Picks for MI vs KKR Dream11 Match: Top Picks – BatsmanSuryakumar Yadav got out cheaply for a single-digit score in the last match against Chennai Super Kings. That being said, he is a match-winner who has got the necessary backing of the Mumbai team management to play freely. He has scored 176 runs so far in this IPL at an average of 22.Shubman Gill played a sensible knock in the last match against RCB. The 22-year-old talented batter from Punjab scored 48 runs from 34 deliveries in the run chase. Overall, in this year’s IPL, he has amassed 180 runs in 8 matches at an average of 22.5.Top Picks – All-RoundersKrunal Pandya can be a good budget pick. He might be struggling to make a big impression in this IPL. However, he is a resilient all-rounder and will be hopeful of delivering well in this match.Andre Russell was brutal with the ball against RCB. His unplayable yorker to dismiss AB de Villiers was one of the main highlights of the match. He ended with the figures of 3/9.Top Picks – BowlersTrent Boult is a wicket-taking bowler who swings the ball both ways and is very effective in the powerplay. The New Zealand left-arm quick has scalped 10 wickets in this year’s IPL, with the best figures of 3/28.Varun Chakravarthy likes to attack the stumps every time he runs in, and he did the same against RCB. Bangalore batters struggled to read his variations and fell to his trap. He was the player of the match for his figures of 3/13.Top Picks – WicketkeepersQuinton de Kock was cruising well in the match against Chennai Super Kings, but was dismissed when he was batting on 17 runs. He has mustered 172 runs in 7 matches so far in this year’s IPL, with the highest score of 70*.Suggested Playing XI No.1 for MI vs KKR Dream11 Fantasy Cricket:Quinton de Kock, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Nitish Rana, Shubman Gill, Andre Russell (vc), Venkatesh Iyer, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, Varun ChakravarthySuggested Playing XI No.2 for MI vs KKR Dream11 Fantasy Cricket:Quinton de Kock (c), Ishan Kishan, Shubman Gill (vc), Suryakumar Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Krunal Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Lockie Ferguson, Varun ChakravarthyMI vs KKR Risky Captaincy Choices:Playing in his debut IPL game, Venkatesh Iyer played some breath-taking shots against RCB and fearlessly attacked the top-quality bowlers. He remained not out on 41* runs from 27 deliveries. He is a risky captaincy pick for your fantasy teams.It will be interesting to see how he adjusts to his role of a number three, but Nitish Rana played quite a few extraordinary knocks in the first phase of IPL 2021, where he batted as an opener. In fact, he scored a half-century against Mumbai Indians.Player you should avoid:Dinesh Karthik bats way down the order for KKR, which is why it’s hard to pick him in the final eleven.Also Read- Virat Kohli to quit RCB captaincy after the end of IPL 2021 season
Bolstered by the return of Captain Rohit Sharma, the Mumbai Indians (MI), still agonizing from their defeat against the Chennai Super Kings will look to return against the Varun Chakravarthy (KKR) inspired Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Sheikh Zayed Abu Dhabi Stadium on Thursday night.The Tamil Nadu tweaker won handsome praise from India and RCB skipper Virat Kohli, who said he’s going to be “a key factor when he plays for India” after taking 3/13 in four overs. The 30-year-old’s magical spell included as many as 15 dot balls and Glenn Maxwell was one of his three scalps.When the teams met in Chennai during the first stage of the IPL, Rohit hit 43 off 32 balls and Chakravarthy took 1-27 in four overs, as MI won by 10 runs. Their 10-wicket victory over RCB allowed KKR to climb a little further to sixth spot on the table with six points from eight games.In order to keep their playoff hopes alive, they need to keep winning from here.Also Read- Virat Kohli to quit RCB captaincy after the end of IPL 2021 seasonMissing the services of their talismanic captain and India allrounder Hardik Pandya, MI went down by 20 runs to CSK on Sunday night. Both the players were rested as a precautionary measure, allowing them to recover from their niggles.While there’s still doubt over Pandya’s availability, head coach Mahela Jayawardene had said that Rohit should be returning for the KKR match.In a pre-match presser on Wednesday, MI’s left-arm pacer Trent Boult said: “They (Rohit and Hardik) are both recovering very well. In terms of their selection for the next game, I’m not too sure what’s going on there. But day by day, they are improving. It was probably more of precaution that they had that extra bit of rest the other night against Chennai. But they are obviously two vital players in the XI for Mumbai. And we’re desperate to get them back. So, fingers crossed that they’ll be pretty good to go over the next couple of games.”Lying at the fourth spot with eight games in eight matches, MI desperately need their key players for the business end of the tournament.View this post on InstagramA post shared by Mumbai Indians (@mumbaiindians)He (Rohit) was sorely missed. He is right up there in terms of experience and runs achieved in this format. So, it was a big hole but it was a good decision to make sure (that) he’s 100% with the amount of cricket coming up. If he comes to the eleven, it will be brilliant, but we want to make sure he is 100% fit,” said Boult.Whether Pandya plays on Thursday or not, he will also be seen by the Indian selectors, who chose him ahead of players like Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar for the T20 World Cup, which follows directly from the IPL in the United Arab Emirates.“If Hardik is fully fit, he can contribute with both bat and ball. He’s a very good player for any side. He’s working hard to get himself fit and we’re desperate to have him back,” said Boult.They would blame themselves for allowing CSK to get out of jail in the last game. Having reduced them to 24 for four in six overs, MI’s stand-in captain Kieron Pollard perhaps allowed their opponents to get off the hook when he chose to take off pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Boult and bring on his spinners.Also Read- Former Mr India contest winner Manoj Patil attempts suicide, blames actor Sahil Khan for harrassment
