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SRH vs GT LIVE Score, IPL 2025 LIVE Cricket Updates© BCCI/Sportzpics

Mumbai Indians head coach Mahela Jayawardene and captain Hardik Pandya.

As Mumbai Indians brace for their fifth outing in IPL 2025, the focus remains firmly on their faltering batting unit when they face a resurgent Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Wankhede Stadium on Monday. MI, who have lost three of their first four matches, are under pressure to course-correct quickly if they want to stay in the playoff race.
With only Suryakumar Yadav and Ryan Rickelton having scored fifties this season, MI hold the dubious record of the fewest half-centurions among all teams. The absence of solid starts and poor conversion by middle-order mainstays like Tilak Varma has hurt them significantly.
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Former captain Rohit Sharma, who missed the previous game due to a knee injury, remains doubtful for this clash. His return could be pivotal, especially with MI in desperate need of stability at the top. Jasprit Bumrah’s rejoining the squad adds a glimmer of hope, though his match readiness is still unclear.

RCB, on the other hand, have been a team on the rise. With two wins from three games, they sit third on the table and are looking to bounce back after a narrow loss to Gujarat Titans. While Virat Kohli has had a mixed start to the season, RCB’s strength lies in their all-round depth — Phil Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, and Rajat Patidar have all chipped in with key contributions. The inclusion of former MI star Tim David in the RCB camp could be a crucial factor, especially at the short-boundary Wankhede.
In terms of bowling, RCB possess an experienced pace attack with Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, although their spinners have yet to find rhythm. MI’s biggest challenge will be facing this disciplined bowling unit without collapsing in the middle overs, a pattern that’s plagued them so far.
Match Details: MI vs RCB

Head-to-Head Record

Mumbai Indians have historically held the edge over RCB, especially at home. However, current form suggests a more balanced contest, with RCB high on confidence and MI looking for redemption.
Squads
Mumbai Indians: Hardik Pandya (c), Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ryan Rickelton, Robin Minz, Bevon Jacobs, Naman Dhir, Will Jacks, Mitchell Santner, Raj Angad Bawa, Reece Topley, Deepak Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Arjun Tendulkar, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Trent Boult, Karn Sharma, and others.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Rajat Patidar (c), Virat Kohli, Phil Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, Tim David, Liam Livingstone, Krunal Pandya, Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Nuwan Thushara, Lungi Ngidi, and others.
As MI aim to stop their downward slide, RCB will look to capitalise and further solidify their position in the top half of the table. With plenty of firepower on both sides, fans can expect a high-octane Monday night clash.

After registering a victory over Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, Rajasthan Royals (RR) right-hand batter Riyan Parag revealed the reason behind playing slow at the start of the innings during the 18th fixture of the ongoing edition of the cash rich league. A hard-hitting half-century by Yashasvi Jaiswal and top bowling spells from Jofra Archer, Sandeep Sharma and Maheesh Theekshana helped Rajasthan Royals (RR) secure a 50-run win over Punjab Kings (PBKS) in their Indian Premier League (IPL) clash at Mullanpur on Saturday.

With this loss, PBKS suffered its first defeat of IPL 2025 and has started its home leg with a setback. It is in fourth place with two wins and a loss, whereas RR is in seventh place with two wins in two matches.

Speaking after the match, the uncapped Indian cricketer hailed Sanju Samson’s leadership, describing him as a “great leader.”

“(On starting out slow) That was the plan; getting runs in the powerplay was crucial. We knew the ball would stick a bit, so my plan was to take it easy till the 16th over and then accelerate. Couldn’t do it to the best of my ability but happy with the way I could contribute. (On Samson) He has been a great leader, and having him back is a great plus for us. (On him batting at number 3 for right-left combination) Today, it was the game before it was pre-planned. Today, the plan was we’d decide who walks in after the sixth over. (On the last ball incident) I saw Lockie coming in and I saw his strike-rate on the big screen. It was 147, so I told Jofra you might need a long-on, but then I realised he didn’t need one so I rushed back in, perhaps just in time,” Riyan Parag said in the post-match presentation.

After PBKS won the toss and elected to bowl first, an 89-run stand between Yashasvi Jaiswal (67 in 45 balls, with three fours and five sixes) and Sanju Samson (38 in 26 balls, with six fours) kickstarted things to RR. Cameos from Riyan Parag (43* in 25 balls, with three fours and three sixes) and Shimron Hetmyer (20 in 12 balls, with two fours and a six) took RR to 205/4 in 20 overs.

Lockie Ferguson (2/37) was the top bowler for PBKS. Arshdeep Singh and Marco Jansen got one wicket each.

During the run chase, PBKS was reduced to 43/4 by Jofra Archer (3/25). However, an 88-run stand between Nehal Wadhera (62 in 41 balls, with five fours and three sixes) and Glenn Maxwell (30 in 21 balls, with three fours and a six) gave PBKS hope. However, after their dismissals, PBKS lost their direction and missed boundaries dearly.

PBKS was restricted to 155/9 in 20 overs, thanks to some fine bowling support from Sandeep Sharma (2/21) and Maheesh Theekshana (2/26).

Jofra Archer was awarded the Player of the Match for his exceptional bowling performance.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Rajasthan Royals bowler Jofra Archer in action during the Indian Premier League (IPL) match between Rajasthan Royals and Punjab Kings.
| Photo Credit: SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR

Jofra Archer’s quiver must be full of self-conviction. After a terrible start to IPL 2025, the Rajasthan Royals speedster has bounced back with two clutch performances.

The pacer’s spell against Sunrisers Hyderabad (4-0-76-0) was the costliest in the tournament’s history, and the next outing against Kolkata Knight Riders, too, was underwhelming (2.3-0-33-0).

Archer flipped the narrative against Chennai Super Kings (3-1-13-1) and Punjab Kings (4-0-25-3).

Even though his wicket-maiden first over against CSK was impressive, what took the cake was how he rattled Priyansh Arya and Shreyas Iyer’s stumps to derail PBKS’ 206-run chase early.

And he banked on his biggest strength — bowl fast and make the batters look clueless — when the going got tough.

While Priyansh had no answer for a 144.6kph-delivery that seamed off the pitch to hit the top of off-stump, Shreyas played all over a 148.6kph-thunderbolt.

“The beginning of the tournament did happen… you have to cash in on days like these and take the bad ones in your stride,” Archer said on Saturday.

The RR dressing room, too, was sure that it was just a matter of time before Archer found his mojo again.

“We all know Jofra is a world-class bowler. The skill he brings to the table is totally different. The management knew that the day he got that one wicket, his confidence would be high. After that, obviously, he is one of the toughest bowlers to face. I am sure, with more games, he is going to get better and better,” Sandeep Sharma said after RR’s 50-run win at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Stadium.

“You go back and see what you have been doing differently [when you go for runs]. That is what he did. That is what champion players do. Whatever is needed, they do it quickly,” Sandeep added.

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands celebrates with his trophy after winning the Japanese Formula One Grand Prix at the Suzuka Circuit in Suzuka, central Japan, Sunday, April 6, 2025.
| Photo Credit: AP

World champion Max Verstappen claimed a pole to flag victory for Red Bull at the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday (April 6, 2025), winning his first race of the Formula One season and an unprecedented fourth in a row at Suzuka.

Verstappen crossed the line for his 64th Grand Prix victory to a huge ovation from the 115,000 crowd some 1.4 seconds ahead of McLaren’s championship leader Lando Norris in second place.

Norris’s lead over Verstappen in the drivers’ championship was slashed to one point, while his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri rounded out the podium in third place on his 24th birthday.

“What an uplifting weekend after a miserable start,” said Verstappen. “Great, great weekend for us.”

The top six finished as they had started on the grid and all 20 cars crossed the line after 53 laps with no rain, none of the trackside grass fires that disrupted practice, and not a single yellow flag.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was fourth, the Mercedes of George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli finished fifth and sixth with Lewis Hamilton seventh in the other Ferrari after moving up one place in the race.

Verstappen got away cleanly on a damp track in overcast conditions at the figure-of-eight circuit south of Nagoya and, although he informed his team of early issues changing gears, quickly opened up a two-second gap over Norris.

Seven-times world champion Hamilton gambled on hard tyres to start the race and slid past Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar on turn one.

Japan’s Yuki Tsunoda, making his Red Bull debut after being bumped up from Racing Bulls in place of Liam Lawson last week, made a point by overtaking the New Zealander for 13th place in the early laps.

Tsunoda finished 12th with Lawson 17th for Racing Bulls.

Norris had cut the gap to Verstappen by half a second by the time they went in for new tyres on lap 22 but the Briton complained that his Dutch rival had forced him onto the grass as both exited the pit lane.

The stewards took no action, however, and Verstappen was back out in front once the pit stops had shaken out but only after 18-year-old Antonelli had briefly become the youngest driver to lead a grand prix.

Australian Piastri pressed his teammate hard over the last 10 laps, and told the team he felt he had the pace to pip Verstappen at the post, but Norris held his position as his Dutch rival cruised to victory.

Struggling Mumbai Indians will hope the batters will get their act together to shoulder responsibility when they take on an inspired Royal Challengers Bengaluru in an Indian Premier League match in Mumbai on Monday (April 7, 2025).

With three defeats in four games marking yet another poor start for the five-time winners, Mumbai Indians are grappling with batting woes. Only two MI batters have hit half-centuries so far in four matches, with Suryakumar Yadav and Ryan Rickelton recording one each.

Among all the 10 IPL teams, this is the least number of contributions in terms of fifties per batter.

Scoring fifties has always been tough in T20 cricket, but IPL teams have increasingly moved towards being top-heavy with their best batters getting most overs to face and looking to bat through.

At the centre of MI’s struggles with the bat are former skipper Rohit Sharma, who missed the last game against Lucknow Super Giants due to a blow to his knee at the nets after a poor start to the IPL, and middle-order batter Tilak Varma, whose starts haven’t converted into big scores.

It remains to be seen if Rohit is fit for the clash against RCB but MI will certainly need a quick fix to their batting woes and would need Suryakumar to continue doing the heavy lifting.

With 177 runs to his kitty, the India T20I captain has been MI’ best batter this season. His maiden half-century gave MI the glimmer of hope for a win over LSG, but it corresponded with Tilak’s failure to accelerate which left the lower order with an uphill task in the chase.

Despite skipper Hardik Pandya’s five-for, LSG accumulated a total which was also beyond MI as they lacked a hard-hitting batter lower down the order. Pandya struck a valiant 16-ball 28 but got no support from the other end.

Mumbai Indians have indeed been bolstered with the return of Jasprit Bumrah, who joined the team ahead of the clash against RCB but it remains to be seen if he is fit to bowl or not.

MI’s only win so far came last week over Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede, which would certainly spur the confidence of the Pandya-led side to put up a unified show again.

For the visiting Royal Challengers Bengaluru, it would be an opportunity to exploit MI’s batting frailties and pile up further pressure on their opponents.

Virat Kohli has blown hot and cold as he began this IPL with 59 not out against KKR but since then has struggled.

But RCB have enough firepower in their ranks to keep pushing for bigger totals, with Phil Salt and Devdutt Padikkal providing fireworks and skipper Rajat Patidar the necessary cushion if things are going against them.

Tim David could prove to be a vital cog in this RCB line up. The former MI player knows this ground well and its short boundaries will give the burly Australian another chance to play an explosive knock, something which he has done several times in the past for his former side.

RCB have a strong pace bowling attack in Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar providing control at the top, but spin bowlers are yet to make their mark.

RCB are placed at third position in the points table and would be keen to bounce back from their loss to Gujarat Titans in their last outing.

Bowler Jasprit Bumrah joined the squad ahead of their Indian Premier League contest against Royal Challengers Bengaluru here.

It remains to be ascertained if the Indian bowling spearhead has got the NCA fitness clearance to bowl in the tournament.

Mumbai Indians announced the development on social media on Sunday saying, “Once a cub now a lion, the lion is back to be the king of the jungle again.”

The Teams (from):

Mumbai Indians: Hardik Pandya (c), Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Robin Minz, Ryan Rickelton, Shrijith Krishnan, Bevon Jacobs, Tilak Varma, Naman Dhir, Will Jacks, Mitchell Santner, Raj Angad Bawa, Vignesh Puthur, Corbin Bosch, Trent Boult, Karn Sharma, Deepak Chahar, Ashwani Kumar, Reece Topley, VS Penmetsa, Arjun Tendulkar, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Jasprit Bumrah.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Rajat Patidar (c), Virat Kohli, Phil Salt, Jitesh Sharma, Devdutt Padikkal, Swastik Chhikara, Liam Livingstone, Krunal Pandya, Swapnil Singh, Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Manoj Bhandage, Jacob Bethell, Josh Hazlewood, Rasikh Salam Dar, Suyash Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Nuwan Thushara, Lungi Ngidi, Abhinandan Singh, Mohit Rathee, Yash Dayal.

Match starts at 7:30pm IST.