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IPL 2021 | RR vs MI: As the race for playoffs intensifies, Mumbai face Rajasthan

Rajasthan Royals batsmen were on a roll against the Chennai Super Kings after they chased down a target of 190 runs in the 18th over and by 7 wickets in Abu Dhabi. While openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and Evin Lewis gave a perfect and brisk start to the team, Shivam Dube capitalised on it pretty well and helped his side take two crucial points.

RR are riding high on confidence after demolishing the CSK bowling unit and will now lock horns with Mumbai Indians on Tuesday in Sharjah. 

MI on the other hand, haven’t really played the kind of cricket they are known for and the points table talks about how the Rohit Sharma-led side has fared in this edition especially in the second leg. 

In 12 matches that they have featured, Mumbai have suffered defeats in seven of them. The batting order failed to fire in the last match against Delhi Capitals as they were restricted to 129/8 in 20 overs. Though, the bowlers did start off the proceedings on a positive note but the lack of runs on the board made them see another loss in this edition. 

Talking about the previous match between the two teams, MI won that game by 7 wickets after chasing down a target of 172 in the 19th over. 

The two sides would want to clinch a win in this match to stay alive in the playoffs race. 

Match Details

Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians, Match 51

Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah

Date & Time: October 5th at 7:30 PM IST, and at 6:00 PM local time

Live Streaming: Star Sports Network and Disney+Hotstar

Pitch Report

The pitch during the previous game between RCB and PBKS at the venue looked relatively better for batting but this was one of the rare instances when the batters were on the dominant side. 

The batsmen will have to get their eye in before going for aggressive strokes. So, if you win the toss, elect to bat and try to put up a good total on the board. 

Rajasthan Royals riding high on confidence

In sports, it is said that a single performance can do wonders for a player or a team and RR probably unleashed that in the previous encounter against Chennai Super Kings when their batsmen were on song and unveiled a brutal assault on the Super Kings bowlers. 

While openers Jaiswal and Lewis have proved their worth, Shivam Dube was one of those batsmen who needed to chip in an innings of the sorts that he played against Chennai. 

The left-handed batsman’s body language spoke volumes about the confidence he had while batting on that particular day. If these four batters continue to do so, RR can certainly dominate MI especially with the likes of David Miller, Glenn Phillips and Rahul Tewatia to follow. 

MI’s struggle to fill the voids

Who could have thought that five-time champions would be tottering down the points table and depend upon other teams’ results to figure out their playoffs scenario. But it is how it is. 

Mumbai Indians have been struggling to get any form in this season. The batsmen haven’t gone all guns blazing and as a result, the side has failed to put runs on the board. 

But one of the most important factors of MI’s dismal show is Kieron Pollard’s form, especially with the bat. Barring one game in the second leg, the West Indies all-rounder hasn’t really played that “Pollard” calibre innings. 

The right-hander needs to get into the groove if Mumbai are looking for any positive results else it won’t take much for them to bow out of the tournament. 

Team News

Rajasthan Royals: Rajasthan Royals are in a good form at present with the bat especially after the way they fared in the last match. But the bowling is a bit of concern as the bowling unit was hit for some runs and the team management needs to focus on the same. 

Though, the likes of Chetan Sakariya, Mustafizur Rahman and Kartik Tyagi have the ability to trouble the batsmen. While Mustafizur has been deceiving the batsmen with his slower one, Tyagi has a great temperament under pressure and the youngster has shown that. 

Mumbai Indians: Mumbai Indians would want their batting unit to put some runs on the board as they struggled to be among runs in the last match. 














Probable XI

Rajasthan Royals: Evin Lewis, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson (c & wk), Shivam Dube, Glenn Phillips, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Mayank Markande, Chetan Sakariya, Kartik Tyagi, Mustafizur Rahman

Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Saurabh Tiwary, Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Jayant Yadav, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah

CE Fantasy XI

Sanju Samson (c), Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav (vc), Evin Lewis, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Kieron Pollard, Shivam Dube, Jasprit Bumrah, Mustafizur Rahman, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Chetan Sakariya

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Race to the Playoffs | How teams stack up in the fatal four-way clash between KKR, PBKS, RR and MI

The Indian Premier League is nearing its business end now and with only 10 matches remaining before the champion of the 2021 season is crowned on October 15. But the road to the finale is tough and goes through the Playoffs, reaching where itself is full of excitement. Three teams in Chennai Super Kings, Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bangalore have already made it to the Playoffs and there is only one spot left, for which four teams are fighting. The battle for the Playoffs has thus become a fatal four-way in the senes that any team can cut the other and take the final spot. Thus, below is all the probabilities of the four teams making it to the Playoffs Kolkata Knight Riders' chances For KKR, it is the simplest way up as they have the best net run rate among the four teams competing for the Playoffs. Sitting at the fourth position currently with 12 points from 13 games, the men in purple would face Rajasthan Royals in their final league stage fixture. If they win it, they simply go through because Mumbai Indians, the only other team that can get to 14 points along with KKR, has a dismal run rate that cannot be covered up. But what if KKR lose their last game? In that case, a lot of permutations and combinations come into play for KKR to qualify. If KKR lose the game with Rajasthan having won its previous match, then the race is over and Rajasthan go through. However, if Rajasthan loses against Mumbai Indians and win against KKR, that would put the Knight Riders on level terms with the Royals. Considering that Punjab Kings too win their last game against Chennai Super Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad can beat Mumbai in their final game, then all the four teams would be at 12 points and then the net run rate would be under consideration, in which case KKR would have the upper hand courtesy of their superior run rate until and unless they don’t get all out within 10 overs and Royals chase down the total within five overs. But if any of the above conditions are not fulfilled, then KKR would have to give up on their quest for a magical comeback season. Rajasthan Royals' chances The next team with great qualification chances is Rajasthan Royals. After winning a phenomenal game against table-toppers Chennai Super Kings in their last game, the team from the pink city, which looked down and out from the Playoffs race, suddenly rose from the ashes. Now their qualification road is very simple as they meet their two toughest competitors in their two upcoming matches. If they beat Mumbai Indians, whom they meet in their next match on October 5th, they will have the best shot at the playoffs when they face Knight Riders on October 7th. A win in both the games will see them through pretty easily. What if RR lose against Mumbai and win against KKR? In that case, the qualification of Rajasthan will depend on two factors, first Mumbai must lose to Sunrisers Hyderabad and then second will be its ability to beat Knight Riders in a fashion that their net run rate soar above their opponents, which looks a very difficult probability given the current state of net run rates. Mumbai Indians' chances While KKR and Rajasthan have their qualification intact in their own hands, Mumbai somehow is now dependent on not only winning its own two games but on Rajasthan Royals to beat Kolkata in their last game. The equation has come down to such a cliff because of their dismal net run rate of (-0.453), which cannot get past KKR’s net run rate of (+0.294) even when a miracle takes place. Thus for Mumbai to qualify, it must first win its two games and KKR must lose its last game. There is another probability through which Mumbai can go through and it is if the match between KKR and RR somehow gets cancelled or washed off. But expecting a rain washout in UAE is nothing short of expecting a miracle. Punjab Kings' chances Well, there is hardly any chance for Punjab Kings of qualification as per se, but mathematically they are still into it. With their net run rate of (-0.241), they are the closest to KKR’s humungous net run rate. If they win handsomely against Chennai super Kings and KKR lose very badly against RR, with the fact that Mumbai lose against SRH and win against Rajasthan, but not with a huge margin, then Punjab has a slight mathematical chance of making it to the Playoffs. But actually, it is next to impossible. Thus, starting from Tuesday, it is going to be an exhilarating week of drama and thrilling encounters in the VIVO IPL 2021.

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World T20 2021: Tickets for India-Pakistan match sold out within hours

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