The last time the Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket team, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), played the Mumbai Indians (MI) on Sunday, April 16, 2023, at the Wankhede Stadium in Maharashtra, MI managed to beat KKR by just 5 wickets (with 14 balls left) in one of the closest fought fixtures between the two teams in reason years.
Before the match began, both teams were fairly evenly priced, which was then accurately represented by the final outcome. KKR were priced at 2.05 in the decimal odds format, meaning they had a 48.80% implied probability rate (IPR) of winning, and MI were priced at evens, which is 2.00 in decimal odds, meaning they had a 50% chance of winning.
The next time these two face each other will be in the upcoming 2024 IPL season, which is officially scheduled to get underway on March 22. Let’s dive straight in and take a closer look to see if KKR will get even with MI when they next face each other.
Can KKR win their first match against MI in IPL 2024?
The quickest, easiest, and most reliable way to determine if KKR can win their first match against MI would be to examine the latest KKR vs MI match odds and conduct as much research as possible into both teams.
Find out if either team acquired any promising new players during the IPL mini auction in Dubai in December or if they have got rid of some of their best players.
Also, take a look at exactly who will be in the squad closer to match day and try to find out other simple things like what the weather might be like on the day and if any players are currently injured or looking in fine form.
Let’s take a quick look at some of the latest outright match-winner odds we can expect to be offered for the upcoming match between MI and KKR:
- Odds-on favourite: Mumbai Indians. Decimal odds: 1.83. Fractional odds: 5/6. American/moneyline odds: -120. Implied probability rate (IPR): 54.50%
- Least favourite: Kolkata Knight Riders. Decimal odds: 2.15. Fractional odds: 23/20. American/moneyline odds: -120. Implied probability rate (IPR): 54.50%
If you live in India and are looking for a trustworthy online sports betting site with some of the iGaming industry’s most competitive IPL odds, the most trusted site you can turn to in 2024 is the official 10CRIC Sports website (10cr10.com).
Can the Mumbai Indians or the Kolkata Knight Riders win IPL 2024?
Again, the best thing to do would be to look at the latest IPL 2024 outright winner odds to find out which team will most likely come out on top. Let’s take a look at the latest odds for all ten IPL 2024 teams, starting with the favourites:
- Odds-on favourites to win IPL 2024 outright: Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Decimal odds: 5.75. IPR: 17.40%
- Second odds-on favourite to win IPL 2024 outright: Mumbai Indians (MI). Decimal odds: 6.50. IPR: 15.40%
- Joint-second odds-on favourite to win IPL 2024 outright: Gujarat Titans (GT). Decimal odds: 6.50. IPR: 15.40%
- Team: Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). Decimal odds: 8.00. IPR: 12.50%
- Team: Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). Decimal odds: 8.50. IPR: 11.80%
- Team: Rajasthan Royals (RR). Decimal odds: 9.00. IPR: 11.10%
- Team: Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). Decimal odds: 10.00. IPR: 10.00%
- Team: Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). Decimal odds: 12.00. IPR: 8.30%
- Team: Punjab Kings (PBKS). Decimal odds: 12.00. IPR: 8.30%
- Team: Delhi Capitals (DC). Decimal odds: 13.00. IPR: 7.70%
More information to help you decide who to bet on
The Mumbai Indians ended up finishing the competition last year in fourth place, and the Kolkata Knight Riders finished in seventh. MI are the joint-most successful team in the IPL since the competition began in 2008.
Both MI and CSK (Chennai Super Kings, the current reigning champions) have won five titles each. In comparison, the second most successful team in IPL history are the Kolkata Knight Riders, who have won two titles (back in 2012 and again in 2014).
MI made a huge change this year and recently named Hardik Pandya their captain. KKR will be captained again by Shreyas Iyer, but their secret weapon this year is Australian left-handed batter Mitchell Starc.
He became the most expensive player in the history of the IPL mini auctions when KKR secured his services for a record-breaking Rs 24.75 crore, despite not having played in the IPL for eight years!
Kolkata Knight Riders vs Mumbai Indians head-to-head stats
KKR and MI have faced each other on 31 separate occasions. During this time, MI have won a total of 22 games, and KKR have only won on 9 separate occasions. Interestingly, KKR’s highest total against MI is 232, and MI’s highest total against KKR is 210.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, KKR’s lowest total against MI is 67, and MI’s lowest total against KKR is 68. Although squad news for either team has yet to be released, here is a look at the probable starting 11 line-ups for each team.
MI are most likely to field Hardik Pandya (c), Ishan Kishan (wk), and Rohit Sharma, along with Piyush Chawla, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Gopal, and Romario Shepherd. That’s also not forgetting Tim David, N. Tilak Varma, Jasprit Bumrah, and Gerald Coetzee.
KKR are most likely to field Shreyas Iyer (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), and Mitchell Starc, along with Vaibhav Arora, Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, and Chetan Sakariya. That’s not forgetting Andre Russell, Varun Chakravarthy, Rinku Singh, and Nitish Rana.
Final thoughts
IPL 2024 is shaping up to be one of the most closely thought competitions in the history of the competition. KKR will be looking to improve on last year by getting one over MI in their first match against each other and winning by a fair margin. They will also be hoping for a higher finishing position in the league at the end of the season.
However, MI will also be looking to become the first team in IPL history to win their sixth IPL title and will do anything to stop the current reigning champions, the Chennai Super Kings (who are also the current favourites to win IPL 2024 outright, don’t forget), from being the first team to win six titles, and from winning back-to-back seasons.
As IPL 2024 fever builds, we will just have to wait and see how the first few games pan out to better understand which team will most likely come out on top this year.
