IPL 2024: High-flying sensational Rajasthan Royals (RR) look to end Jaipur leg on winning note vs MI in IPL 2024.

After two victories on the road that helped them consolidate the No.1 position, Rajasthan Royals(RR) return to Jaipur for their final match at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium. With a 3-1 record here this season, the  Rajasthan Royals(RR) have somewhat rebuilt their fortress and they’ll be keen to complete that job before travelling for four away games and two ‘home matches’ in Guwahati which complete their league stage journey.

RR are up against a Mumbai Indians team that has started to find its feet in the competition after a wayward start and will be looking to add more to the wins column. These two sides last faced each other at the start of April when the left-arm seam of Trent Boult and Nandre Burger, and the guile of Yuzvendra Chahal proved too much for MI to handle. That was the third straight loss that MI suffered but they have since won three out of four and will be looking to build on that.

RR vs MI Previous match performances

Rajasthan Royals (RR) have been performing exceptionally well in the Indian Premier League 2024, having won six out of seven games this season. In their next game, they will be up against the Mumbai Indians (MI), and a win here will take them closer to the playoffs. Their previous game was a memorable win against the Kolkata Knight Riders.

A Jos Buttler special saw the Royals pull off a record run-chase as they reached the target of 224 off the last ball in a thrilling finish at Eden Gardens. Riyan Parag also made a useful contribution to extend his good run in the tournament but RR will be hoping that the rest of the batting order gets going, especially Yashaswi Jaiswal and Dhruv Jurel who haven’t been at their best. The spinners were expensive in the last outing and RR will be hoping the return to Jaipur and the bigger boundary dimensions help them get back in business.

On the other hand, Mumbai Indians come into this game after a win against the Punjab Kings. In their previous match, MI overcame a spirited lower-order performance from Punjab Kings to defend a total of 192. Rohit Sharma’s good form with the bat augurs well for MI, same with Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma. Ishan Kishan has had a couple of low scores and MI will be hoping he gets amongst the runs, while the captain Hardik Pandya himself needs to step up.

Among the bowlers, Jasprit Bumrah has led from the front while Gerald Coetzee’s performance against PBKS also comes as a shot in the arm for MI who have been depending largely on their pace spearhead. The spin department has been an area of concern for MI but Shreyas Gopal’s familiarity with the Jaipur conditions could serve them well and Mohammad Nabi could also have a role to play with the ball.

RR vs MI Head to Head

RR 13 – 15 MI. The Royals have won five out of seven times against MI in Jaipur, with Mumbai’s last win at this venue going way back to May 2012.

RR vs MI Pitch conditions

The Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur is known to be a perfect pitch for batters. The surface offers true bounce and pace, allowing batters to hit through the line. While it can be a bit challenging to bat on the wicket early in the game, the conditions tend to improve as the match progresses. Spinners tend to enjoy bowling on this surface as the ball bounces and turns sharply. However, for the pacers, it is a tough wicket as the dryness of it doesn’t offer them much. According to the forecast, the skies at Jaipur are expected to be clear on April 22.

Sawai Mansingh Stadium has hosted four games so far and when Royals had batted first in three of those, they posted scores of 193, 185, 196. It has been a batting-friendly venue with some assistance for spinners. The final game in Jaipur is also expected to be a high-scoring one.

Teams haven’t been able to cross the 200 barrier at this venue in 2024. Totals in the vicinity of 180-190 have proved good totals here, with RR having defended successfully twice. They were on course to defend 196 against Gujarat Titans too but Rashid Khan and Rahul Tewatia pulled off something special. Earlier, RR themselves chased down a target of 184 against RCB here. So the toss isn’t that much of a factor at this venue.

RR vs MI The big picture

After losing three games in a row, Mumbai Indians bounced back with three wins in their next four matches. However come Monday, against the high-flying Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur, Jasprit Bumrah’s brilliance alone might not be enough to guarantee a win.

Table-toppers Royals have won six of their seven games with Sanju Samson (276 at a strike rate of 155.05), Riyan Parag (318 at 161.42) and Jos Buttler (250 at 147.92) contributing 844 runs. Up against a strong batting side, Mumbai will need other bowlers to chip in as well if they are to move up in the points table from sixth position.

For the visitors, Bumrah has led the attack with 13 wickets at an economy rate of 5.96. Their new-recruit Gerald Coetzee has been inconsistent in this IPL, but he stepped up against a spirited Punjab Kings with 3 for 32. Though guilty of leaking 9.92 runs per over in his first IPL season, he has accounted for 12 wickets in seven games, joint-second in the wicket charts.

However, barring the two seamers, Mumbai’s bowling has disappointing. Their overall economy of 10.11 is the third worst among the teams and they average 31.67 with the ball.

Hardik Pandya and Akash Madhwal bowled in five games, both conceding more than 11 runs an over for a combined nine wickets. Shreyas Gopal replaced Piyush Chawla in the spin department, but has not found his feet yet. The under-utilization of Mohammed Nabi has also hurt Mumbai – the Afghan spinner has bowled just six overs in four matches, with no wickets to show. On paper, Royals start as favorites and would look to end their final game in Jaipur on a high.

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