IPL 2020 Match 5 MI vs KKR: Preview, Playing XI predictions, Weather report

Tags: Indian T20 League 2020, Kolkata XI vs Mumbai XI, 5th Match at Abu Dhabi, Sep 23, 2020, Kolkata XI, Mumbai XI

Published on: Sep 22, 2020

Scorecard | Commentary | Graphs

Mumbai Indians will look to break their UAE hoodoo when they take on Kolkata Knight Riders in match number five of IPL 2020 on Wednesday, at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi. Having lost all their five matches in the UAE back in 2014, slow starters Mumbai failed to open their account against Chennai Super Kings in the tournament opener, going down by five wickets.

Kolkata Knight Riders, on the other hand, will be beginning their campaign with the game against Mumbai. Traditionally, MI have dominated KKR in the T20 league. However, the latter can take some confidence from the fact that they got the better of Rohit Sharma’s men the last time these two sides met in the UAE during the 2014 edition. Last year, KKR finished fifth so they would be keen to improve.

Batting let Mumbai Indians down in the first match. Quinton de Kock and Saurabh Tiwary looked good during their stay at the crease. However, neither could carry on to take Mumbai to a challenging total. Most of the big names, including skipper Rohit Sharma, Kieron Pollard and Hardik Pandya, failed to make an impression. In the bowling department as well, no one really stood out. Jasprit Bumrah’s rare off-day made matters worse for the defending champions.

Speaking of KKR, the two-time champions will be keen to get off to a good start. Last year, they were heavily dependent on Andre Russell, who pulled off some miraculous wins for the franchise. Russell would once again be the key, but this time KKR also have the unconventional Eoin Morgan in their ranks. As for their bowling, Aussie pacer Pat Cummins will be keen to justify his ‘most expensive overseas player' tag.

Head to Head Record: Mumbai have been dominant over KKR in the IPL, winning 19 out of 25 games, and losing just six.

MI Probable XI: Rohit Sharma (C), Quinton de Kock (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Saurabh Tiwary, Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, James Pattinson, Rahul Chahar, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah

KKR Probable XI: Sunil Narine, Shubman Gill, Nitish Rana, Eoin Morgan, Dinesh Karthik (C & WK), Andre Russell, Rinku Singh, Shivam Mavi, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Pat Cummins, Kuldeep Yadav

Pitch Report

Looking at the MI-CSK game, there was something in it for both batsmen and bowlers. Spinners should come into play in the second half of the innings. Batting second could be the way to go keeping the dew in mind.

Weather conditions

The weather will be bright and sunny with temperature hovering around 37 degrees Celsius and humidity in the region of 53 per cent.

--Renin Wilben

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