Updates:
Mumbai Indians are always known to be slow starters in IPL. After back to back losses, The Hardik Pandya led team finally put points on board with a crushing 8 wicket win over defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders at Wankhede on Monday.
Chasing 117 runs for victory the men in blue were hardly made to sweat as they reached 50 runs inside 6 overs with Rohit Sharma once again failing with bat by scoring 13 runs.
Ryan Rickelton not only completed half century but also put a good partnership with Will Jacks. However Jacks was dismissed for 16 runs by Andre Russel with Rahane taking a sharp catch in the 10th over.
Suryakumar Yadav smashed a six with his trademark shot on the very first ball he faced after coming to the crease to get the crowd buzzing. MI took just 57 minutes to cross the 100 mark as KKR bowlers failed to pick wickets. Both batsmen ensured there was no further hiccups and took Mumbai Indians across the finish line. SKY remained unbeaten on 27 runs, while Rickleton stayed unbeaten on 62 runs.
Mumbai Indians bowling unit led by debutant Ashwani Kumar destroyed the KKR batting lineup as the defending champions were bowled out for 116 runs in 16.2 overs. Ashwani bagged 4 wickets while Deepak Chahar had 2 wickets to his name. The rest of the bowlers bagged a wicket apiece.
The powerplay belonged to Mumbai Indians as they picked up four wickets for 41 runs in the first 6 overs. It was the pacers who did the maximum damage with Deepak Chahar picking up 2 wickets, while debutant Ashwani Kumar and Trent Boult picked up one wicket apiece.
KKR openers Quinton de Kock and Sunil Narine were dismissed early by Boult and Chahar. KKR skipper Rahane tried to build the innings after early wickets. However debutant Ashwani Kumar halted his innings for 11 runs after Tilak Verma took a juggling catch. Rahane's innings comprised of a boundary and six. Vice captain Venkatesh Iyer failed to make an impact scoring just 2 runs before getting out to Chahar for his second wicket.
Angkrish Raghuvanshi playing on his own ground looked solid and set for a big knock. However Hardik Pandya once again delivered with the ball dismissing the youngster for 26 runs off 16 balls. Raghuvanshi's innings was laced with 3 boundaries and one six.
With half of the side already back to pavilion, Manish Pandey who came in as impact sub along with Rinku Singh steadied the innings. However Ashwani Kumar's double wicket over turned the tides in Mumbai's favour. The left arm pacer fist dismissed Rinku Singh followed by peach of a delivery to dismiss Manish Pandey for 19 runs in the final ball of the 10th over. He then got rid of Andre Russell to add more misery on KKR.
The defending champions laboured their way to 100 runs by 14 over but the damaged had already been done inside 80 minutes as they had lost 9 wickets by then setting an easy target for the home team to chase.
Kolkata Knight Riders Playing XI: Sunil Narine, Quinton de Kock (wk), Ajinkya Rahane (capt), Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Spencer Johnson, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy
Mumbai Indians Playing XI: Ryan Rickelton (wk), Will Jacks, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya (capt), Naman Dhir, Mitchell Santner, Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult, Ashwani Kumar, Vignesh Puthur
Kolkata Knight Riders Squad: Quinton de Kock(w), Venkatesh Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Rinku Singh, Moeen Ali, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Spencer Johnson, Vaibhav Arora, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Manish Pandey, Anrich Nortje, Anukul Roy, Luvnith Sisodia, Sunil Narine, Rovman Powell, Mayank Markande, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Chetan Sakariya
Mumbai Indians Squad: Rohit Sharma, Ryan Rickelton(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya(c), Naman Dhir, Mitchell Santner, Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Satyanarayana Raju, Robin Minz, Will Jacks, Ashwani Kumar, Raj Bawa, Corbin Bosch, Vignesh Puthur, Karn Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Reece Topley, Bevon Jacobs, Arjun Tendulkar, Krishnan Shrijith
Toss Update:
Mumbai Indians have won the toss and opted to field first in the crucial game against the Kolkata Knight Riders at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on 31st March 2025.
Preview:
The iconic Wankhede Stadium is all set to host its first match of IPL 2025, with Mumbai Indians (MI) taking on Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Monday, March 31. This clash will pit the five-time champions against the defending champions at one of the most famous venues in the IPL.
Mumbai Indians have had a tough start to the season, with two consecutive losses, including a defeat to Gujarat Titans at Motera. They will be looking to bounce back and get their campaign back on track in this crucial encounter. Hardik Pandya and his team will be determined to turn things around and secure a much-needed win.
Kolkata Knight Riders, meanwhile, will head into this match with confidence after their victory over Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Guwahati. However, they have not been as consistent as they were during their title-winning run last season. This match will also be a special homecoming for KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane, who has spent much of his career at Wankhede Stadium.
