The biggest T20 carnival of the world is back as defending champions Mumbai Indians will face Royal Challengers Bangalore in the curtain-raiser of the tournament on Friday.

Both the teams will look to get off to a good start and get themselves on the points table.

We have the Match Prediction that can help you in placing the right bets. We will discuss current form, head to head, stats, and players to watch out for in the upcoming match.

Mumbai Indians has a potent squad and they will look to hit the ground running. The reigning champions are known to tick the right boxes and they are always a force to reckon with in the IPL. MI will aim to continue their domination in the IPL and they will look to be at their best.

Royal Challengers Bangalore will want their all-rounder Glenn Maxwell and Kyle Jamieson to have good seasons for them. RCB death bowling could once again be their Achilles Heel and they will want their batsmen to be at the top of their game. RCB will look towards Kane Richardson and Adam Zampa to deliver with the ball.

Head to Head: Overall matches: 29, Won by MI – 19, Won by RCB – 10

Players to look out for: For RCB, AB de Villiers, Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, and Yuzvendra Chahal are going to hold the key.

Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, and Jasprit Bumrah will play a crucial role for the reigning champions.

Stats: Virat Kohli has scored the most runs in MI vs RCB matches whereas Harbhajan Singh has scalped most wickets vs RCB while playing for MI.

Match Prediction: Taking head-to-head record and the team’s strengths into account, Mumbai Indians will begin the contest as favourites.