MI vs KKR, IPL 2025: Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders match preview, probable playing XIs, head-to-head stats

Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium has long been recognized for its batting-friendly pitch, where short boundaries often lead to high-scoring matches. The surface holds up well throughout the game, and the presence of dew in the second innings favors the chasing team. As a result, captains winning the toss typically opt to bowl first to capitalize on the conditions under lights.

Rohit Sharma has been blowing hot and cold with the bat while the big-hitting Ryan Rickelton is yet to find his rhythm on the Indian pitches in his first IPL tournament. Suryakumar Yadav looked to be getting back into form with his 48 against GT, but the knock wasn't the one in which the Indian T20I skipper flourished the way he is known for.

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Tilak Varma remains MI's best hope with the bat along with Suryakumar and the two T20I specialists' promising start to this IPL will be one of the positives that MI would want to build on their campaign.

Skipper Hardik Pandya will return to the Wankhede Stadium reinvigorated after a string of success on the personal front, in front of the crowd which was completely riled up against him last year when he took over MI's charge from Rohit.

Jasprit Bumrah's absence will prevent Mumbai Indians from unleashing their desired new ball attack comprising left-armers Trent Boult and Reece Topley, as Deepak Chahar will have to share the responsibility of the pace attack with the veteran New Zealand bowler.

For Kolkata Knight Riders, it would be imperative to build on their big win over Rajasthan Royals after losing their season opener to Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Led by Ajinkya Rahane, KKR have the requisite firepower in their ranks but Moeen Ali as an opener looked odd in the absence of Sunil Narine as Quinton de Kock's opening partner, with their batting line-up consisting of Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer and Angkrish Raghuvanshi.

In Rinku Singh and Andre Russell, KKR continue to have a solid attacking prowess at the death overs while their bowling is equally appealing.

Harshit Rana and Vaibhav Arora form a potent new ball attack with the Australian left-armer Spencer Johnson in the mix too, but KKR's real strength lies in their spin attack featuring Narine and Varun Chakravarthy who have the ability to stifle the opposition's batting even on good wickets.

Narine trained here on Saturday signalling his recovery from sickness and his potential comeback will keep KKR excited given the role he has played for the three-time winners in IPL.

KKR will also take a lot of heart from their 24-run win over Mumbai Indians last year — their first at Wankhede Stadium in 12 years — and the one that reminded that this venue hasn't been a fortress of late for the five-time winners.

Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders head to head stats:

MI have historically dominated KKR, winning 23 of their 34 encounters. However, KKR will draw confidence from their victory over MI at Wankhede last year—their first at the venue in 12 years.

Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders probable 11s:

Mumbai Indians (MI): Rohit Sharma, Ryan Rickelton(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya(c), Naman Dhir, Mitchell Santner, Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Satyanarayana Raju.

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR): Quinton de Kock(w), Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Spencer Johnson, Vaibhav Arora, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy. (With PTI inputs)