IPL 2021, MI vs RCB Playing 11: The opener is being held in Chennai. (File)The Indian Premier League, one of the world’s most lucrative annual sporting properties, is back in 2021. For fans, the good news is that not even the lengthening shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic has been able to stop the Twenty20 juggernaut.
Last year’s delayed tournament was shifted to the United Arab Emirates but the 14th edition returns to India, where the coronavirus situation has worsened significantly in recent weeks.
With curfews currently in force in many Indian states, the IPL can be expected to surpass last year’s viewership numbers with cricket fans in the world’s second-most populous nation set to be glued to TV sets and electronic devices. Champions Mumbai Indians, captained by Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore get the eight-team tournament going at M.A. Chidambaram Stadium on Friday.
Match 1, M.A. Chidambaram Stadium, 09 Apr, 2021
The IPL is back! RCB won the toss and sent MI out to bat first... so catch all the live commentary here.
Mumbai Indians (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma(c), Chris Lynn, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan(w), Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Rahul Chahar, Marco Jansen, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah
Royal Challengers Bangalore (Playing XI): Virat Kohli(c), Rajat Patidar, AB de Villiers(w), Glenn Maxwell, Daniel Christian, Washington Sundar, Kyle Jamieson, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Shahbaz Ahmed, Yuzvendra Chahal
Star Sports 1, Star Sports 2, Star Sports 1 Hindi will provide live telecasts of all the IPL 2021 matches in India.
Disney Hotstar VIP will provide live-streaming of the match between Mumbai and Bangalore. IPL live on Jio TV is another avenue.
Rohit Sharma (C), Suryakumar Yadav, Chris Lynn, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Ishan Kishan, Krunal Pandya, Marco Jansen, Rahul Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult.
Virat Kohli (C), Devdutt Padikkal, AB de Villiers, Glenn Maxwell, Mohammed Azharuddeen, Daniel Christian, Washington Sundar, Kyle Jamieson, Yuzvendra Chahal, Navdeep Saini, Mohammed Siraj.
Last 5 matches at Chepauk
Mumbai Indians: W, W, W, W, W
Royal Challengers Bangalore: L, L, L, L, L,
Rohit Sharma can win an unprecedented hat-trick of IPL titles.
Rohit Sharma-led MI are the most successful team in the franchise with 5 titles but the their last batsmen to hit a hundred was in 2014. Lendl Simmons scored a brisk 100 off 61 balls against Punjab Kings.
Virat Kohli, captain of RCB, is the last batsman to score a hundred for the red army which is still waiting for its first IPL title. He hit it in 2019 against KKR at Eden Gardens.
Chris Lynn is likely to make his debut for Mumbai Indians tonight against RCB in the opening match of IPL 2021 as Quinton De Kock is unavailable.
“For a tournament that is having another edition barely six months removed from the last one, the appetite has been fantastic,” said Bhairav Shanth, the managing director of global sport consulting firm ITW. “In 2020, there was a slight dip in deal volume and sizes. But now as we see this edition occupy the prime summer slot with nothing else significant on TV to compete against, we have already seen new partners come on board in the league at a premium of 30-40% from what it was last year,” he added.
Kohli produced an absolute masterclass in a run-chase against SRH, scoring 93 off just 47 balls.
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