The Royal Challengers Bangalore will hope to give the fans at the Chinnaswamy Stadium a show to remember, with Virat Kohli making his comeback from injury in the IPL 2017 game against the Mumbai Indians.
With RCB making a slow start to the season, again, they are in need of some momentum, and what better time to find that momentum than in the skipper's first match of the season.
RCB's only win of IPL 2017 so far has come at home, and that will give them encouragement and confidence that they can go on to beat the Mumbai Indians, who are coming off two consecutive wins at the Wankhede.
With Kohli and AB De Villiers now back in the lineup, confidence will definitely grow in the RCB camp, with the team from Bangalore all set to back their strength again – batting.
RCB picked up their win in IPL 2017 after deciding to bat first, despite winning the toss, but that plan is about to change, what with De Villiers, Kohli and quite possibly Chris Gayle, all in the batting lineup.
"Now with me coming back and all specialist batsmen playing, the thinking might change back again," Kohli, whose team have been traditionally chasers, said. "Bangalore has generally been a ground where you can chase down high totals and (Friday) being a day game obviously that really matters a lot."
Irrespective of how the wicket plays, though, or even if RCB bat or bowl first, as long as their superstars find form with the willow, the home team will be alright.
The key is for Kohli to find his touch as quickly as De Villiers did in the last game, because when these two are in top form, they will take the game away from the opposition.
Refreshed from the injury-enforced break, Kohli will be looking forward to playing some competitive cricket again.
"It's almost been a month," Kohli added. "It's never a good feeling when you have played for seven-eight years without missing a game at all. Taking rest is different but missing a game because of injury is different.
"I am just delighted and excited to take the field. May be it was just to reignite that spark in me. When you play a lot of cricket, that tends to go down.
"So now I am more excited to take the field."
The Mumbai Indians will give RCB as difficult a game as the home team are likely to get at the Chinnaswamy, and with a bright young middle order to call upon, MI's chances in IPL 2017 do look bright.
Nitish Rana has been a revelation, Krunal Pandya has shown his big-hitting ability, while Hardik Pandya has finished a couple of innings off really nicely.
Now, if the Mumbai Indians can find a little more consistency from Jos Buttler and get Rohit Sharma playing free-flowing cricket again, they will be a really difficult team to beat on any ground, not just at the Wankhede, something RCB will be well aware of.
When and Where to Watch Live
Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Mumbai Indians is set to begin at 4pm IST (11.30am BST). TV and live streaming information is below.
India: TV: Sony Six, Sony Six HD (English), Sony Max (Hindi), Sony ESPN and Sony ESPN HD (Telugu, Tamil, Bengali). Live Streaming: Hotstar.
International: Live Streaming: Cricketgateway.
UK: TV: Sky Sports 2. Live Streaming: Sky Sports Go.
USA: TV: Willow TV. Live Streaming: Willow TV Online.
Middle East: TV: OSN Sports Cricket HD. Live Streaming: OSN Play.
South Africa: TV: SuperSport Two. Live Streaming: SuperSport Live Video.
