MI vs RR

While we talk about the intense rivalries in the IPL, there are some rivalries which go under the radar sometimes. One such rivalry has brewed between Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians over the years - MI vs RR. Now, many will assume that Mumbai Indians would have an outright upper hand in this battle. It cannot get further wrong as Rajasthan Royals is one of a few teams which have managed to trouble the 4-time champions the most in the competition. The inaugural champions of the IPL have always pushed the mighty Mumbai Indians to their limits.

MI vs RR Head to Head

As clearly visible from the numbers, it is a far intense rivalry than one could think of. Both sides are trading heavy blows and match each other with every blow. In 20 games played between these two sides, both sides have managed to win 10 each. Both sides have shared the bragging rights so far.

Last meetings

For IPL MI vs RR in 2019, both sides faced each other during the league stage. The first game was played at Mumbai Indians’ home Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. The Royals’ skipper Ajinkya Rahane won the toss and invited Mumbai Indians to have a go with the bat first. The decision quickly backfired as Quinton de Kock and skipper Rohit Sharma added 96 runs for the opening wicket inside 11 overs. While de Kock played a knock of 81 runs off deliveries, Rohit Sharma scored 47 runs off 32 deliveries. Rajasthan pulled things back in the middle overs but Hardik Pandya’s cameo of 28 runs off 11 deliveries towards the end pushed MI vs RR live score to a respectable 187/5. Jofra Archer was the star with the ball for the Royals as he clinched 3 wickets in his quota of 4 overs.

Skipper Ajinkya Rahane began the chase alongside Jos Butler for the Royals. Both match their counterparts and the Royals were off to a flyer. The openers added 60 runs inside 7 overs before Rahane fell off Krunal Pandya’s delivery on the 2nd ball of the 7th over scoring 37 runs off 21 deliveries. But Jos Butler kept going for his business before departing at a score of 89 runs off 43 deliveries including 7 fours and 7 sixes. His knock put the Royals firmly in the driver seat. A sensible knock from Sanju Samson and the finishing touches from Shreyas Gopal meant Rajasthan Royals registered a 4 wickets win with 3 balls to spare. Only Jasprit Bumrah and Krunal Pandya (2 and 3 wickets respectively) could impress with the ball for the Indians.

The return leg was played at Sawai Mansing Stadium, Jaipur – home of Rajasthan Royals. This time Rajasthan Royals’ skipper Steven Smith won the toss and once again elected to bowl first against Mumbai Indians. This time Mumbai Indians didn’t have an ideal start as the skipper Rohit Sharma fell in the 3rd over off Shreyas Gopal’s delivery after scoring only 5 runs. However, Quinton de Kock again played a brilliant knock of 65 runs off 47 deliveries and built a partnership of 97 runs with Suryakumar Yadav (34 runs). Hardik Pandya and Ben Cutting tried to provide the finishing touches to put up good total of 161/5 on a sluggish pitch. Shreyas Gopal was the pick of the bowlers for the Royals who picked up 2 wickets giving away only 21 runs in his 2 overs.

Chasing the target, Rajasthan Royals were off to brisk start courtesy Sanju Samson before Ajinkya Rahane fell on the 4th delivery of the 4th over scoring 12 runs at a score of 39. From here skipper Steven Smith took the charge and went on to score undefeated 59 runs. While wickets fell around him, he got support from the youngster Riyan Parag (43 runs off 29 deliveries) before the youngster ran himself out 15 runs away from the target. All-rounder Stuart Binny provided the finishing touches to the chase to compelte the season double over Mumbai Indians. Only Rahul Chahar could trouble the batsmen of the Royals and finished with 3 wickets against his name.

Head to Head 5 Meetings

This will come as a surprise to many as Rajasthan Royals have dominated Mumbai Indians in the recent times. They have won 4 games in the last 5 between these 2 world class teams. I fact, Rajasthan Royals haven’t lost a game to Mumbai Indians in the last 2 seasons and they have managed to win all 4 games between them.

Who are RR top batsmen?

Wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson leads the batting charge for Rajasthan Royals. In fact, he has amassed the most runs among the batsmen from both sides with 431 runs against his name. Ajinkya Rahane, who started his career with Mumbai Indians, is 2nd in the list with 409 runs. Australian all-rounder Shane Watson is 3rd with 343 runs and Jos Butler has moved up to the 4th position with 189. Australian superstar Steven Smith concludes the top 5 batsmen for the Royals against Mumbai Indians with 173 runs.

Who are RR top bowlers?

Dhawal Kulkarni who has also played for Mumbai Indians tops the bowling charts for Rajasthan Royals against Mumbai Indians with 17 wickets. Shane Watson comes 2nd behind with 13 wickets and Jofra Archer is the new entrant at the 3rd position with 9 wickets. Australian legend Shane Warns is still on the 4th position in the list with 7 wickets. Meanwhile, Kevon Cooper is sitting on the 5th position in the list with 7 wickets in his kitty against Mumbai Indians.