Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Banglore are the two teams who have been a part of IPL since its inauguration. The excitement for MI vs RCB matches has always been quite intense. The two franchises have a huge and passionate fanbase. Every single time MI and RCB face each other in a cricket match, it generates engagement among cricket fans.
This article aims to explore the top 10 MI vs RCB matches in IPL history.
So, without further wait. Let’s get started.
1. MI vs RCB, Dubai, 2020
The number one on the list is the league match of the IPL 2020 season. It was a night match played in Dubai. RCB batted first and completed 201 runs with a loss of 3 wickets. The openers, Devdutt Padikkal and Aaron Finch, built a strong partnership.
Padikkal scored 54 runs off 40 balls with the help of 2 sixes and 5 boundaries. Finch made 52 runs from 35 balls. In the middle order, AB De Villiers scored 55 runs off 24 at an exceptional strike rate of 229.16. Trent Boult was the only bowler from Mumbai Indians who claimed 2 wickets at a decent economy rate of 8.50.
MI had a difficult start to their batting with the top order collapsing under pressure. However, Ishan Kishan’s brilliant innings played a role in helping MI make a comeback. Kishan fell one run short of scoring a hundred. He made 99 runs from 58 balls. Kieron Pollard also had a great day with the bat. He made 60 runs from 24 balls at a terrific strike rate of 250.0.
The thrilling match went on till the last ball. MI needed 4 runs from the last ball to end the match in a tie. Pollard hit a mighty sweep and the ball bounced once before clearing the rope, signaling a tie. The match went to the most exciting part, the super over. From there, RCB did well to win the match.
2. MI vs RCB, Bengaluru, 2013
The next one on the list is the match between MI and RCB from IPL 2013. Batting first, RCB gave a target of 157 for MI to chase. The opening batsman, Chris Gayle, played an important knock. He scored 92 runs off 58 balls. His innings included 5 sixes and 11 boundaries. No one except him could stay long on the crease.
However, the skipper, Virat Kohli added quick runs to the scoreboard. He scored 24 runs off 14 balls. The star bowler of Mumbai Indians, Jasprit Bumrah, had a great day with the ball. He took 3 wickets, including getting Virat Kohli’s.
Mumbai Indians did not have a huge target to chase. However, the batting lineup of MI could not deliver as they were expected to. Dinesh Karthik’s knock of 60 runs off 37 balls was the highlight of the show. Vinay Kumar claimed 3 wickets for his great spell of bowling. MI needed 17 runs from 12 balls.
Due to a terrific over bowled by Jaydev Unadkat, he conceded only 7 overs. The match ended in a thrilling finish as RCB won the match by 2 runs.
3. MI vs RCB, Bengaluru, 2017
MI won the toss and decided to bowl first. Overall, it was a good performance by the bowlers of Mumbai Indians as they restricted RCB to a score of 142 runs. Mitchell McClenaghan took 2 wickets, including getting Virat Kohli out. The Pandya brothers, Krunal Pandya and Hardik Pandya claimed one wicket each.
For RCB, Kohli proved to be the lone warrior as he was the only batsman with a good day with the bat. Kohli scored 62 runs off 47 balls with the help of 2 sixes and 5 fours.
Mumbai Indians had a terrible start to their batting, losing 5 wickets for just 33 runs. However, the solid partnership between Krunal Pandya and Kieron Pollard took the game away from RCB. Pollard scored 70 runs off 47 balls.
Pandya, on the other hand, faced 30 balls and scored 30 runs. RCB struggled to defend the target. However, Samuel Badree played a special part as he took 4 wickets in his four overs. The game went on till the last ball of the 18th over. Mumbai Indians won this match by 4 wickets.
4. MI vs RCB, Mumbai, 2015
The next match on the list is the one played between MI and RCB at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. Despite losing the match by the margin of 39 runs, MI gave us another thriller to remember.
Batting first, RCB dismantled the bowling of MI by scoring 235 runs at the end of 20 overs. The star batsmen, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers completely dominated the game. De Villiers hit 133 runs on just 59 balls. His innings included 19 boundaries and 4 sixes. From the other end, Kohli scored 82 runs off 50 balls.
Mumbai Indians failed to make any impact with the bowling. They were able to take only one wicket till the end of 20 overs. MI had a decent start with the batting. The top-order batsman, Lendl Simmons, scored 68 runs off 53 balls. He was followed by Kieron Pollard who scored 49 runs off 24 balls. Pollard batted at an incredible strike rate of 204.16.
The middle-order and the lower-order failed to capitalize on the effort made by Pollard and Simmons. No one from the other batsmen reached the figure of 20s. Harshal Patel and Yuzvendra Chahal were two bowlers who restricted MI during the death overs as RCB won this nail-biting match.
5. MI vs RCB, Mumbai, 2019
Mumbai has witnessed some of the most exciting MI vs RCB matches. The league stage match played on April 15, 2019, featuring the two teams was another thrilling encounter. RCB batted first and scored 171 runs with a loss of 7 wickets. AB de Villiers and Moeen Ali formed a strong partnership in the middle order.
De Villiers scored 75 runs off 51 balls. Moeen Ali made a half-century from 32 balls. However, the rest of the batsmen failed miserably. Parthiv Patel was the only batsman to reach the score of 20s.
Lasith Malinga had a great day with the ball as he ended his bowling figures with a four-wicket-haul. Hardik Pandya also claimed a wicket.
Mumbai Indians had a decent start to their batting. Quinton de Kock made 40 runs off 26 balls. From the other end, Rohit Sharma made quick runs, scoring 28 runs off 19 balls. In the lower-middle order, Hardik Pandya played a terrific knock of 37 runs from just 16 balls. Albeit, Mumbai Indians won this match by 5 wickets.
However, the game was on till the last over. Moeen Ali had the best bowling figures among the bowlers of MI. He took 2 wickets at an economy rate of 4.50.
6. MI vs RCB, Bengaluru, 2019
Another nerve-wracking match was played at Wankhede Stadium, Bengaluru. Mumbai Indians posted 187 runs on the scoreboard. The top order of the franchise played a significant role. The skipper, Rohit Sharma made 48 runs off 33 runs with the help of a six and 8 boundaries.
He was followed by Suryakumar Yadav, who added 38 runs off 24 balls. The all-rounder Hardik Pandya scored a quick 32 runs off 14 balls at a strike rate of 228.57. Yuzvendra Chahal returned the best bowling figures for RCB. He secured a four-wicket haul in his 4 overs.
The top-order of RCB had a solid start as well. Virat Kohli scored 46 runs off 32 balls. It included 6 boundaries. In the middle order, AB De Villiers played another special knock, scoring 70 runs off 41 balls. All other batsmen in the middle order failed to create an impact. RCB fell just short of the target and MI won the match by the margin of 6 runs.
Jasprit Bumrah was the Player of the Match for MI as he took 3 wickets at an economy rate of 5.00.
7. MI vs RCB, Gqeberha, 2009
The next one is the MI vs RCB match from the second season of IPL. Batting first, Mumbai Indians put 157 runs on the scoreboard. Ajinkya Rahane and Jeal-Paul Duminy formed a memorable partnership. Rahande scored 62 runs off 49 balls.
On the other hand, Duminy added 59 runs from 41 balls. Both of these players remained unbeaten till the end of the innings. Although he went wicketless for RCB, Indian bowler KP Appanna bowled his overs with the best economy rate, 6.50.
Mark Boucher was the top runscorer for RCB. He made 49 runs off 33 balls with the help of 2 sixes and a boundary. Mumbai Indians won this match by the margin of 16 runs.
All the bowlers of MI played a role in this victory by claiming a wicket. Harbhajan Singh remained the only bowler to have 2 wickets in his 4 overs at an economy rate of 3.75.
8. MI vs RCB, Bengluru, 2018
The MI vs RCB match from the IPL season of 2018 has also found its place in the list of top 10 matches between the two teams. RCB batted first in the match and scored 167 runs with a loss of 7 wickets.
The opener, Manan Vohra scored 45 runs off 31 balls at a strike rate of 145.16. Brendon McCullum had an entertaining run with his 37 runs off 25 balls. Virat Kohli also added 32 runs off 26 balls. Once again, Hardik Pandya was the star of the show for Mumbai Indians. He took 3 wickets in the 3 overs he bowled.
MI had a tough start to their batting innings. The top-order failed to deliver and MI lost 5 wickets for 87 runs. However, Pandya played a brilliant innings under pressure to get his team close to the target, Pandya scored a half-century off 42 balls. The game was on till the last over. However, MI fell just 14 runs short of the target.
Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, and Muhammad Siraj, all three bowlers claimed two wickets each for RCB.
9. MI vs RCB, Bengluru, 2015
Another high-score match between the two teams at Bengaluru. Mumbai Indians set up a huge target of 210 for RCB. Lendl Simmons, the opener, played a knock of 59 runs off 44 balls. At #3, Unmukt Chand scored 58 runs off 37 balls.
The star of the show was Rohit Sharma, the captain of MI. Sharma scored 42 runs off just 15 balls at a strike rate of 280.00. David Wiese was the highest wicket-taker for RCB, claiming a four-wicket-haul.
RCB had a fine day with the bat as the game went on till the last over. AB de Villiers dismantled the bowlers of MI by hitting 41 runs from 11 balls. David Wiese also played an outstanding innings of 47 runs from 25 balls.
Harbhajan Singh was the top wicket-taker for the Mumbai Indians. He took 3 wickets at an economy rate of 6.75. MI won the match by a margin of 18 runs and Harbhajan Singh received the Man of the Match Award.
10. MI vs RCB, Mumbai, 2014
On May 6, 2014, MI scored 187 runs in a league match against RCB. Rohit Sharma received the Player of the Match award for his half-century. The all-rounder, Kieron Pollard scored 43 runs off 31 balls at a strike rate of 138.71.
Harshal Patel had the best bowling figures among the other bowlers of Royal Challengers Banglore. He claimed a wicket with an economy rate of 7.00.
RCB had a decent start to their batting. The top-order batsmen added a significant contribution to keeping the scoreboard moving. Chris Gayle hit 38 runs off 24 balls till he got bowled by Harbhajan Singh. In the middle-order, Rilee Rossouw scored 24 runs off 14 balls.
However, RCB could not chase the target and lost the match by just 19 runs. Jasprit Bumrah had the best economy rate of 5.00 with two wickets for the Mumbai Indians.
Conclusion
The MI vs RCB is one of the most iconic and intense rivalries in the Indian Premier League. The list features matches from the year 2009, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2020. Moreover, it has two intense matches from the year 2019.
The best and the most intense match on the list is the one from the 2020 season of IPL. The match ended in a tie and RCB won the match in the super over.
