IPL 2021, MI Predicted XI vs KKR: Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya's fitness main headache for Mumbai against Knight Riders

MI would be hoping to get their campaign back on track when they take on Kolkata Knight Riders in match no 34 of this Indian Premier League at Abu Dhabi on Thursday.

Defending champions Mumbai Indians were not off to the ideal start in the UAE leg of IPL 2021 as they were defeated by three-time winners and one of their most fierce rivals Chennai Super Kings. MI would be hoping to get their campaign back on track when they take on Kolkata Knight Riders in match no 34 of this Indian Premier League at Abu Dhabi on Thursday.

Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma.  (Mumbai Indians/Twitter)

Although MI have a distinct upper hand over KKR if we take their head-to-head record into consideration but even the players in the Mumbai camp would agree beating KKR won't be an easy task especially after the resounding victory they achieved over RCB a couple of nights at the same venue. Regular Captain Rohit Sharma and star all-rounder Hardik Pandya's availability will be one of the major talking points in their clash against KKR.

Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders IPL 2021 Live

Here is Mumbai Indians' Predicted XI against Kolkata Knight Riders

Rohit Sharma: The Mumbai Indians captain is likely to return for the KKR fixture in place of young Anmolpreet Singh. MI head coach Mahela Jayawardena had asserted that Rohit's absence in the previous match against CSK is only precautionary and he will be available on Thursday.

Quinton de Kock: The South Africa wicketkeeper-batsman looked a million dollars before he was trapped in front by Deepak Chahar on Sunday. De Kock and Rohit form a commanding opening pair for MI and often become one of the main reasons for their flying starts in the powerplay.

Suryakumar Yadav: SKY would be the first one to admit that he perhaps could have avoided the shot he attempted off Shardul Thakur could have avoided. Suryakumar is one of the rising stars of Indian cricket and a pillar of MI's top-order.

Ishan Kishan: The talented left-hander was livid after he chipped one in the air, pretty much as SKY did. He would be a key factor in the middle-order against a KKR attack that has some real quality bowlers.

Kieron Pollard: His captaincy in the middle overs was questionable against CSK but with Rohit back in the mix, Pollard can go back to what he does best and that is to tear apart attacks in T20 matches.

Hardik Pandya: Just like Rohit, Hardik too was not included in the MI XI for their previous match against CSK. But after the lack of depth evident in their middle-order, it is unlikely that the MI think tank would again take the risk of fielding an XI without Hardik. It will be harsh on someone like Saurabh Tiwary, who scored a fifty in the CSK encounter but the balance of the side is much better when Hardik features in the middle-order.

Krunal Pandya: The senior Pandya did not have a good outing against CSK. He gave away 27 runs in his two overs and got run out for 4. The southpaw would be looking to make amends against KKR.

Adam Milne: The tall pacer from New Zealand is among the fastest bowlers in this IPL and he did his reputation no harm against CSK by picking up a couple of wickets in the powerplay. Milne will be one of MI's key weapons to stop the likes of Andre Russell and Eoin Morgan.

Trent Boult: It's hard to remember a time when Boult did not provide a breakthrough for MI in the powerplay. The New Zealand spearhead has been simply exemplary with the new ball and KKR openers Shubman Gill and young Venkatesh Iyer will have their tasks cut out against the left-arm seamer.

Rahul Chahar: Ever since Chahar was preferred over Yuzvendra Chahal as the leg-spinner in India's T20 World Cup, the anticipation and expectation from him has grown. He was quite good in the previous encounter against CSK, giving away only 22 runs in 4 overs.

Jasprit Bumrah: India's best all-format bowler currently, has a slightly different role in MI. With Milne and Boult starting with the new ball, Bumrah comes in as the first change but his main job is at the back end of the innings where Boult struggles a bit in the Dubai match.

MI Predicted XI vs KKR: Rohit Sharma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Adam Milne, Trent Boult, Rahul Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah