IPL 2025: Mumbai beat LSG to rise to 2nd; Delhi batting first vs RCB

Lucknow Super Giants Playing XI: Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Abdul Samad, Ayush Badoni, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav

Mumbai Indians Playing XI: Ryan Rickelton(w), Rohit Sharma, Will Jacks, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya(c), Naman Dhir, Corbin Bosch, Trent Boult, Deepak Chahar, Karn Sharma

Massive update from the toss at Wankhede that Mayank Yadav will mark his return for LSG. Rishabh Pant won the toss in the afternoon heat and opted to field first.

Mumbai Indians’ star seamer Trent Boult has spoken about how the demands for death bowling has evolved over the years. Boult believes that this is the season that IPL will see a team breach the 300-run mark with the bat. But with shorter boundaries, and rules like impact player substitution, bowlers have their work cut out for them. 

Asked about bowlers needing to evolve their craft in the death overs on JioHotstar’s special series ‘Gen Gold’, the New Zealand bowler said: "It's a challenge and an area I’ve always worked on. My mantra has been to keep getting better and never plateau with my skills or performance. I’m constantly pushing myself to come up with new options and plans. These days, there are so many batters—some we’ve never even heard of or played against—so you’ve got to be on your game. Clarity is key, and executing under pressure makes the difference. It’s all about training well and being ready for those moments."

Will a team score 300 runs this season? Mumbai Indians’ star seamer Trent Boult certainly believes so! 

Asked about batsmen adapting to an aggressive style of play on JioHotstar’s special series ‘Gen Gold’, the New Zealand bowler said: 

“No doubt, a 300+ score will be reached in this tournament. The ball seems to be travelling further, though I’d like to believe it’s still swinging in some parts of the country. From a bowling perspective, the only positive is that batsmen are coming hard, which creates opportunities. If we focus on being accurate, stay aggressive, and give it a real crack, bowlers will have their day at some point. That’s what fans want to see, and I’m sure there’ll be plenty watching.”

With the IPL turning 18 this season, Virat Kohli has emerged as one of the rare players to have never played for more than one franchise in all the seasons. This season, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru talisman has put the perennial under-achievers on his shoulders and batted away with elan: he finds himself as the second top run-scorer this season with 392 runs from nine innings, just 25 runs behind the current wearer of the Orange Cap, Sai Sudharsan who will not be in action today. 

What makes today's clash even more mouthwatering is that Kohli will be returning home to Delhi, where he has not played all that much in recent years.

As Lalith Kalidas points out in his recent piece, "Kohli has not played in his original home city a lot over the last six years, with his appearances limited to three high-profile games – a Test, an ODI and a solitary IPL match – all in 2023. A rare Ranji Trophy game this January teased a reunion."

READ MORE

Former India cricketer Ajay Jadeja said he was looking forward to the exciting clash between Delhi Capitals vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru which pits two teams in the top 3 standings. 

"I don't want to pick because both these teams are probably playing the best cricket that they can as units. Each one is doing their job — Virat is doing what he is meant to do for RCB. Starc has played a role at important stages for DC. They are both teams fighting at their best. This game will be about two teams right at the top, playing the best cricket they have. It will be cracker of a game," Jadeja said when asked about his prediction for the Delhi Capitals vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru game today at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in the national capital.  

Matthew Hayden backed Mumbai Indians as the team having the edge over the Lucknow Super Giants in today's IPL clash. Mumbai come into the game with four wins on the trot.

Hayden said that the five-time champions are overwhelming favourites vs LSG. 

"No doubt, the home team (Mumbai Indians) is winning today. They've got every right to be confident because they're now playing escalated levels of cricket. Former captain, five-time winner of this IPL, Rohit Sharma is back in some sort of form, looking hungry and wanting to contribute. They're just the most complete side. When you think about Mumbai, you think about the bulk of international and domestic talent driving their unit — the likes of Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav. Then you've got guys like Deepak Chahar, along with the superstars involved, and of course, Jasprit Bumrah,” Hayden said on JioHotstar. 

Mumbai Indians were edged out of the top 4 spots after the no result on Saturday where Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings split a point each. The result meant Punjab Kings nudged out Mumbai from the top 4 spots that secure qualification to the IPL playoffs. 

Mumbai are coming into the clash in hot form, having won their last four IPL games after winning just one game from their first five matches. 

The five-tiem champions are hungry to succeed this season after the lacklustre season last time around. 

Virat Kohli will return to Delhi for an IPL game for only the second time in six years. Kohli has not frequented his home city for international games either, with appearances limited to one Test and an ODI in 2023. However, in 10 IPL matches in past, Kohli has a stupendous record at the ground, his averages shooting up above 60, the best for him across any venue in the IPL. Kohli has notched up 6 fifties in 10 games and could have even slammed his first T20 hundred as early as the 2013 season, if not for a run-out on 99 for RCB!

With only a few more weeks left in the league stage, Sunday could be a pivotal day in shaping up the movement towards the Playoffs as four of the top five teams step up for a massive game day in Mumbai and New Delhi. While the Mumbai Indians juggernaut goes up against Lucknow Super Giants at the Wankhede, RCB will be eyeing for some revenge over the Delhi Capitals at the Kotla. Oh, do watch out for Virat Kohli's potentially fiery homecoming tonight!