Kings XI Punjab and Royal Challengers Bangalore will want to continue pushing for a place in the playoffs by keeping the winning momentum intact. Both teams picked up victories in their respective matches at the weekend, and now the plan of action will be to make it two in a row when KXIP and RCB clash in an IPL 2016 match in Mohali on Monday.
With RCB packed with batting talent, with or without Chris Gayle, Kings XI will have to bowl really well to stop the away side from marauding to a win, while Virat Kohli will hope his own bowlers step up to the plate in a match they really cannot afford to lose.
Below is the match prediction of KXIP vs RCB.
If KXIP bat first: Murali Vijay falls early for a second consecutive match, to Stuart Binny, but Marcus Stoinis and Hashim Amla are there to forge a big partnership. Their alliance of 84 sets the right platform for the KXIP middle order. Glenn Maxwell is the man to take the most advantage, as he smashes a 20-ball 50 to take Kings XI Punjab to 183, with the likes of Chris Jordan and Shane Watson unable to plug the runs at the end.
Virat Kohli comes out to bat with KL Rahul as Gayle is left out again. With a chase, Kohli is always the man, and it proves to be the case again, as the captain, coming off a hundred against RCB, plays the perfect role from one end. KL Rahul falls in the third over, but AB De Villiers, after a couple of scratchy innings, finds his mojo in style, with the two superstars taking RCB to a big win, with nearly two overs to spare.
If RCB bat first: Rahul starts off fast, scoring at a brisk rate to take RCB to 60 from the first six overs. Kohli is happy to play second fiddle, biding his time for the final assault. However, one lapse in concentration means the skipper is dismissed by Axar Patel, with Rahul also falling soon after. De Villiers, though, steadies the ship and then goes smash-bang in the company of Watson and Travis Head to take RCB to 187.
The bowling has been a big problem for RCB in this tournament, and they do not make a great start as Vijay and Stoinis plunder 55 runs in the Powerplay. However, Yuzvendra Chahal comes in and picks up two quick wickets – of Stoinis and Amla – leaving Vijay to anchor the chase. The KXIP skipper does his best, but with Maxwell and David Miller only able to score 20 each, the target of 187 proves to be too much, with Kings XI falling short by 15 runs.
