Mumbai take on Kolkata in Match 34 of the Indian T20 League 2021 at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Thursday evening.
Mumbai failed to win the match against their arch-rivals Chennai despite dominating the early part of the game. They will be dejected over the loss and will be looking to return to form against their much-favored opponents. The team is placed 4th in the points table with 8 points from eight matches. Captain Rohit Sharma is expected to be back in the playing XI for this match.
Kolkata resumed their season with a brilliant victory over Bangalore, taking sweet revenge for their poor performance last season against the same opponents. The bowling combination clicked well and delivered a crucial 2 points. A win here will see them leapfrog Mumbai in the points table.
Match Details
- Game: Mumbai vs. Kolkata, Match 34
- Venue: Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi
- Date & Time: Sep. 23, 2021, at 7:30 PM IST/6 PM Local
Probable Playing XI:
Mumbai
Rohit Sharma (C), Quinton de Kock (WK), Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Kieron Pollard, Saurabh Tiwary, Krunal Pandya, Rahul Chahar, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah, Adam Milne
Kolkata
Shubman Gill, Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana, Rahul Tripathi, Eoin Morgan (C), Andre Russell, Dinesh Karthik (WK), Sunil Narine, Lockie Ferguson, Varun Chakravarthy, Prasidh Krishna
Weather Report
The weather is expected to be mostly fair in Abu Dhabi, with the temperature predicted to be around 35 degrees during the game.
Pitch Report
The pitch at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium has generally been a balanced surface. The batters will need to be watchful against the swing with the new ball. Moreover, they will require timing and power in their shots, given the fairly big boundaries. Spinners had more success here compared to the other UAE venues. The average first-innings score in the 2020 tournament here has been 162 runs.
Toss
The team batting first has won just 9 of the 22 games played here last season. As the wicket tends to get better to bat on in the second innings because of dew, batting second is a preferable option here. A first-innings score of around 175 runs can be a competitive one on this surface.
Top Fantasy Picks
Wicketkeeper
- Quinton de Kock looked good in the previous match against Chennai, before getting dismissed for 17 runs. He has scored 172 runs in seven matches so far in this year’s tournament, with the highest score of 70*.
Batters
- Rohit Sharma loves batting against Kolkata, scoring 982 runs at a strike rate of 133.06. He is the highest run getter for Mumbai this season, with 250 runs in seven matches. After missing the previous match, Rohit will be looking to kickstart the tournament in style.
- Shubman Gill played a calm and sensible knock in the last match against Bangalore. He scored 48 runs from 34 deliveries in a small run chase. Overall in this year’s tournament, he has made 180 runs in eight matches at an average of 22.5.
All-Rounder
- Andre Russell was brilliant with the ball against Bangalore, taking 3 wickets in his three overs and conceding only 9 runs. Although he was not required to bat in the previous game, he has a strike rate above 180 and can change the course of the game in a matter of a few overs.
Bowlers
- Trent Boult is a wicket-taking bowler who can be very effective, especially in the powerplay. The left-arm pacer has taken 10 wickets in this year’s edition at an average of 15.11 and the best figures of 3/28. In the last match, he took 2 for 11 in the powerplay overs, including a maiden.
- Varun Chakravarthy was impressive with the ball in the last match. The Bangalore batters struggled to read his variations and attacking lengths. He was adjudged the Player of the Match for his spell of 3/13 and will look to continue the good form here.
Howzat Dream Team
- Wicketkeeper: Q de Kock
- Batters: R Sharma, K Pollard, S Gill, R Tripathi
- All-rounders: A Russell
- Bowlers: R Chahar, T Boult, A Milne, L Ferguson, V Chakravarthy
- Captain: R Sharma/Q de Kock
- Vice Captain: S Gill/A Russell
NOTE: The Howzat dream team above is just a suggestion. You can select your own fantasy 11, and play all the fantasy cricket matches from the Indian T20 League. Also, don’t forget to make any necessary changes to your team once the actual playing 11 is announced by each team (30 minutes before the start of the match) as some players you have selected might not be part of the team suggested.
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