All the teams are on an International break, getting themselves prepared for franchise cricket. One of the most famous cricketing leagues, the Indian Premier League, commences today.
The opener of the latest edition brings to us an old rivalry between the Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai Indians. Right after winning all three series against England, two of the best Indian batsmen, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, are facing each other in this match.
RCB were more than satisfied back in February after adding more firepower to their line-up in the form of Glenn Maxwell and Kyle Jamieson. They were one of the giants in the IPL 2021 auction and, so were MI, as they retained some of their key players like Nathan Coulter-Nile and Adam Milne.
Mumbai Indians, the defending champions, are competing against a side that hasn’t won any edition of the league to date. MI have won five titles before this and, before the start of this edition, their squad looks even more solid. Jasprit Bumrah along with Trent Boult, provide MI one of the best death bowling combinations of the league. The reigning champions have won all their titles, with the help of great bowling as well as batting.
While on the other hand, RCB have always had the privilege of having top-quality batsmen in their line-up. We are talking about the likes of Chris Gayle, AB de Villiers, and Virat Kohli. But even after having enough firepower in their line-up, they have failed to deliver most of the time. This year, they are being considered as one of the favorites for the title. However, the time will tell if they win the trophy this year, or it adds up to their misery.
In the latest edition of the IPL, all the teams are going to play at neutral venues. The decision followed after the recent spike in COVID-19 cases in India.
Since only five venues are being used for the matches, the BCCI decided that the teams will play at neutral venues without spectators.
RCB and MI will go against each other at Chennai, the same venue where the first two test matches of England’s tour of India were played. The wicket is expected to be slow and, the team winning the toss should chase in the latter part of the match.
It will be an exciting competition.
