Mumbai Indians have won the toss and elected to bowl first in a rain-hit clash against Rajasthan Royals at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati. The game has been reduced to an 11-over contest per side due to earlier showers.
There is a major boost for Mumbai Indians as skipper Hardik Pandya returns to the playing XI after missing the previous match. Trent Boult is also returned to the XI replacing Mitchell Santner, strengthening the pace attack.
Rajasthan Royals, on the other hand, have decided to go with the same playing XI, backing the combination that has brought them success so far this season.
Rajasthan Royals Playing XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Riyan Parag (c), Shimron Hetmyer, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Sharma
Impact subs - Ravi Bishnoi, Ravi Singh, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Brijesh Sharma, Shubham Dubey
Mumbai Indians Playing XI: Ryan Rickelton (wk), Rohit Sharma, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya (c), Naman Dhir, Deepak Chahar, AM Ghazanfar, Trent Boult, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah
Mumbai Indians Impact subs - Sherfane Rutherford, Corbin Bosch, Robin Minz, Raj Bawa, Ashwani Kumar
RR vs MI: Captains take at the toss
MI skipper Hardik Pandya kept things calm and in perspective, reflecting on the loss in the previous game and the long nature of the tournament.
“It is just the start of the season. We are bound to make mistakes and it’s a very long tournament. You do not win the IPL in the first couple of weeks and at the same time, you don’t lose it as well.”
On the other hand, RR captain Riyan Parag spoke about the conditions after the rain and expressed satisfaction with the team’s strong start.
“It was supposed to be a little dry, but then it rained a lot, so there is a bit of moisture. It should not play that much due to the 11-over game, but it is what it is. I think very pleased.”
