The famed Wankhede stadium gears up for its first IPL 2025 (Indian Premier League) clash where Mumbai Indians (MI) battles Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on March 31, Monday. Expect fireworks as the five-time champs MI square off with last year’s winners KKR at this legendary cricket ground.

MI’s start this season hasn’t been great enduring back-to-back defeats with their most recent upset by Gujarat Titans at Motera. They’re super keen to flip the script in the next match and shake off the rough start. It’s a big game, and Hardik Pandya, along with his squad, is all in to steer the group toward success.

The Kolkata Knight Riders feel pretty confident, having just taken down the Rajasthan Royals in Guwahati. Still, they’re not quite hitting the same stride of consistency as last season when they scored their third championship. It’s a big deal for captain Ajinkya Rahane too, getting to play at the Wankhede Stadium, which he knows like the back of his hand.

Speaking of, the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai is where all the action’s happening. Looking at their past showdowns, Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders faced off 34 times. Mumbai’s taken the lead with 23 wins to Kolkata’s 11.

Meet the First Team: Mumbai Indians

MI, the champs who’ve snatched the IPL trophy five times, kicked off their 2025 season kinda rough. Captain Hardik Pandya and his crew faced defeat in their opening two games. Their first slip-up was against their big enemy, Chennai Super Kings (CSK), which went down at Chepauk. The second hit came from the Gujarat Titans (GT) at Ahmedabad. They’re now eyeing to snag their season’s first victory when they face KKR.

Likely Squad on Field for Mumbai Indians

1. Rohit Sharma leads off
2. Ryan Rickelton gets behind the wicket
3. Tilak Varma takes the third spot
4. Suryakumar Yadav steps up fourth
5. Hardik Pandya captains at five
6. Naman Dhir came in sixth
7. Mitchell Santner holds the seventh position
8. Deepak Chahar bowls in at eight
9. Trent Boult storms in ninth
10. Vignesh Puthur lands the tenth place
11. Ashwani Kumar grabs the eleventh spot
12. Will Jacks or Corbin Bosch joins as Impact Player depending who plays

We’ve got the 2nd squad here; KKR is stepping in

Kolkata Knight Riders, with three IPL titles to their name, kicked off their 2025 IPL season by getting beaten by RCB at Eden Gardens. But they bounced right back, snagging an easy victory over RR in the following game. They’re now aiming to keep this winning streak alive in their third game by taking down MI.

Likely Kolkata Knight Riders Starting Lineup

1. Quinton de Kock keeps wickets
2. Sunil Narine
3. Ajinkya Rahane captains the team
4. Venkatesh Iyer is in action
5. Rinku Singh steps up
6. Andre Russell brings his power
7. Ramandeep Singh joins the squad
8. Spencer Johnson gets a spot
9. Vaibhav Arora shows his skills
10. Harshit Rana takes the field
11. Varun Chakaravarthy spins the ball
12. Angkrish Raghuvanshi or Chetan Sakariya make an impact as the Impact Player

What Should We Look Forward To?

Wankhede Stadium’s pitch gives the hitters an advantage but it offers fast bowlers decent lift and swerve too. The squad that wins the toss might opt to bowl first due to the target defenders needing to deal with the dew problem. Quick bowlers such as Trent Boult and Spencer Johnson, could be dangerous because they can make the ball swerve in the initial overs.

Wankhede’s pitches are real run-churners, letting hitters rack up scores like nobody’s business. Yet, the same ground gives fast bowlers a sweet deal with nice bounce and some nifty swing when the match kicks off. Night games tend to smile on the squad batting last ’cause of the dew factor. Stick handlers gotta keep an eye out for twirlers and should focus on nudging the ball around instead of whacking it hard. It’s all about cooking up solid batting alliances and finding the right batting tempo that’s key on surfaces like these.

Quick throwers step up in the first few balls when there’s a chance for the cricket ball to whip and curve . But as the game goes on, they often lose some steam. The Wankhede Stadium field gets props for its fairness giving batsmen and pitchers equal chances to shine. Skilled fast pitching and smart hitting often get their due here, which makes this ground a real treat for cricket fans.

Key Players to Keep an Eye On:

1. Tilak Verma(Mumbai Indians) –

Tilak Varma might be the hitter to keep an eye on when he faces off against KKR. This left-hander racked up 70 runs in his past two times at bat but hasn’t turned those beginnings into a monster score yet. But now, with MI gearing up for their debut match on their turf, Varma’s feeling pretty pumped to take advantage and shine. The kid’s got to hold down the fort during the innings and sling in those final, game-changing hits.

2. Hardik Pandya(Mumbai Indians) –

This season in the Indian Premier League, Hardik Pandya has knocked out 11 runs and snagged 2 wickets in just 1 outing. Total showdown with KKR? 14 games played, 395 runs smashed, Average stands at 44,  and he’s claimed 13 wickets.

3. Quinton de Kock(Kolkata Knight Riders) –

In this year’s Indian Premier League, Quinton de Kock knocked out 101 runs across two games. This South African cricket hero is famous for his dynamic batting and top-notch wicketkeeping talent. With a whopping 3,300 runs in Test cricket and an average score of 38.82, he’s nailed six centuries. His knack for hitting back when the going gets tough has switched the game to South Africa’s side more than once. In the T20Is, his score sheet shows over 2,580 runs, and yes, that includes an awesome hundred just proving he’s got a mix of moves. When it comes to squaring off against MI, he’s played 8 matches and racked up 141 runs.

4. Sunil Narine(Klkata Knight Riders) –

This season, Sunil Narine has knocked 44 runs and snagged 1 wicket in a lone inning playing for the Indian Premier League. With his 180-plus wickets across 177 IPL games, he’s been super important for KKR playing a role in their championship wins in 2012 and 2014. He boasts a top IPL bowling score of 5/19 and has chipped in with the bat smashing past 1,500 runs with a crazy speed, at a strike rate of 165.94.

Total Stats vs MI: 23 innings – 51 runs – 26 W

5. Varun Chakaravarthy(Kolkata Knight Riders) –

Varun Chakaravarthy might turn out as the top bowler in the next game against MI. Even though Chakaravarthy bagged just three wickets across a couple of matches, he poses a major threat in the next one. His array of spin tricks could confuse the hitters. The 33-year-old demands caution from MI since he’s got the skills to knock over the whole batting crew.