Bengaluru, April 24: Virat Kohli's in-form Royal Challengers Bangalore take on Mahendra Singh Dhoni's Chennai Super Kings in Indian Premier League's (IPL) 2021 Southern Derby at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday (April 25).
With two points and momentum at stake, the top of the table clash in Match 19 of IPL 2021 between the teams, who are high on confidence promises to be an exciting one.
RCB has won all its four matches so far and sits on top of the standings.
CSK, on the other hand, has hit back after losing its opener to claim three straight wins for the second spot in the points table.
RCB, boosted by a 10-wicket hammering of Rajasthan Royals, will be keen to continue its winning streak. However, the task is easier said than done as CSK is riding high with three good results of its own.
Kohli and the highly-rated Devdutt Padikkal toyed with the Rajasthan Royals bowling and will look to lay a strong foundation again for RCB against a varied CSK bowling attack.
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RCB, which has more often not under-performed amid high expectations, has started well.
However, the RCB batting unit will front up to Deepak Chahar, who is known for his ability to strike early.
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The RCB bowling has done the job so far with Mohammed Siraj being impressive. However, they come up against a formidable CSK which bats deep.
Ruturaj Gaikwad emerged from three failures with an impressive knock against Kolkata Knight Riders and forms a strong opening partnership with Faf du Plessis. A good start will help their cause and with an in-form Moeen Ali pencilled in at No.3 and Suresh Raina to follow, CSK has the firepower to strike late as well.
Skipper Dhoni is yet to find form, but coach Stephen Fleming believes he would get better with every outing.
Add to this the fact that the Wankhede stadium has seen mostly high-scoring games and the team that holds its nerves is likely to come up trumps on a track like this.
Match Details
Matchs starts at: 3.30pm
Live telecast: Star Sports Network
Live streaming: Disney+Hotstar
Live match updates: mykhel
(With PTI inputs)