RCB vs MI Prediction: Who will win today's IPL 2021 match?
With the backdrop of everything that has happened in Indian cricket over the last few weeks, Match 39 of the 2021 Indian Premier League (IPL) between the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and the Mumbai Indians (MI) transcends the scope of the tournament.
Virat Kohli, India's current all-format skipper who will relinquish the T20I captaincy after the T20 World Cup, faces off against his potential successor and the most successful captain in IPL history, Rohit Sharma. The fact that MI and RCB are winless in the second phase, with both teams having lost to the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), only adds intrigue to the matchup.
RCB and MI were placed third and fourth respectively at the start of the UAE leg, and while the former have hung onto the position despite their poor form, MI have dropped to sixth. RCB have one win more than MI in the nine matches they've played each, but the latter's superior net run rate means they could leapfrog the three-time finalists with a victory.
The first meeting between RCB and MI in IPL 2021 was an absolute thriller. In the opening game of the season, which feels like it happened a decade ago, Harshal Patel's five-wicket haul helped RCB clinch a last-ball thriller by two wickets. More entertainment promises to transpire in Dubai on September 26.
IPL 2021: Kohli or Rohit - Who can revive their struggling team first?
RCB and MI have power-packed middle orders, but neither team has managed to get the most out of the resources at their disposal.
RCB went down in embarrassing fashion to KKR in their first game of the UAE leg, with none of the batsmen applying themselves in the middle. AB de Villiers and Glenn Maxwell looked completely out of sorts, and in order to beef up their middle order, RCB brought in Singapore-born white-ball superstar Tim David against CSK.
But that didn't go to plan either as the opening combination of Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal ate up balls in the middle overs to undo their own hard work. RCB should stick with David for another game, even if that means sacrificing the expensive Wanindu Hasaranga.
Navdeep Saini's progress seems to have stalled completely and he might be dropped after just one bad game, with Shahbaz Ahmed a potential replacement for Hasaranga if RCB want to bring Kyle Jamieson back into the mix.
Meanwhile, MI have a few middle-order concerns of their own. Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan have underwhelmed in the two matches so far, with Hardik Pandya conspicuous by his absence. The other Pandya, Krunal, has been nothing short of woeful over the last two IPL seasons, and his place in the team is under serious question.
The MI bowling attack failed to deliver against CSK, with Adam Milne, Trent Boult, Pandya and Rahul Chahar bowling costly spells. But they didn't have many runs on the board then and could be backed to return to form against RCB.
Overall, it seems like MI's problems are easier to solve than RCB's. The defending champions have no real issues with the composition of their playing XI and have historically brought their 'A' game when a playoff spot has been on the line. RCB, meanwhile, have lost each of their last seven IPL games in the UAE.
Unless RCB's talented middle order comes up with something extraordinary, MI should be able to record their first win of IPL 2021's second phase.
Prediction: MI to win Match 39 of IPL 2021