Mumbai Indians are overwhelming favorites against Kolkata Knight Riders in head-to-head record.
Kolkata Knight Riders will begin their campaign in 2020 Indian Premier League against Mumbai Indians on Wednesday in Abu Dhabi. Rohit Sharma's MI had a poor start in the edition as they conceded a five-wicket defeat to Chennai Super Kings in their opening game, and will be aiming to make amends as they take on Dinesh Karthik's men. Mumbai are yet to win an IPL match on UAE soil, and KKR will try to extend MI's wait to break the deadlock. The Knight Riders boasts of power-hitters like Andre Russell and Sunil Narine, with new arrivals like Eoin Morgan and Tom Banton further bolstering the batting order. Shubman Gill, Nitish Rana and Karthik remain the major Indian batsmen in the side. In bowling, KKR welcomes pacer Pat Cummins who is expected to lead the pace attack, while the duo of Narine and Kuldeep Yadav will lead the spin bowling.
Head to Head: Mumbai Indians lead overwhelmingly over the Kolkata Knight Riders in head-to-head ties. In 25 matches between the two sides, Mumbai Indians have won 19 while KKR have only won six. However, in the ony match played between the two sides in the UAE which was played in the same stadium as today's game, KKR had beaten MI by 41 runs.
Crucial Stats..
Hardik Pandya boasts of a strike-rate of 202.48 against Kolkata Knight Riders, which is the highest among players who have played two or more games from the current rosters against each other. Pandya is now at a more advanced role in the batting order as he batted at number five in the side's first match against CSK. Similarily, Andre Russell, who boasts of a strike-rate of 164.13 against MI, may bat at number three for KKR.
Rohit Sharma (708) has scored the most runs against KKR for Mumbai Indians. After a poor outing in the first match against CSK where he was dismissed early by leg-spinner Piyush Chawla, Rohit will be aiming for an improved performance on Wednesday.
Lasith Malinga (20) is the highest wicket-taker for Mumbai Indians against KKR. Justifiably, his presence will be dearly felt as the second-highest wicket-taker is Hardik Pandya, who has taken 11 wickets.
