IPL 2018, Chennai Super Kings vs Royal Challengers Bangalore: Match Prediction

After the thriller at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium a week ago which saw the Chennai Super Kings come out on top against the Royal Challengers Bangalore, the two sides are set to take on each other in their second encounter of the season at the MCA Stadium in Pune.

The Chennai Super Kings, who made a comeback to the tournament after a two-year ban, got off to a great start, winning six out of the nine matches they have played so far. They have won a lot of matches in the last over, especially while chasing. They are currently second on the table with 12 points to their name. Two more wins could see them secure their place in the playoffs. However, they are coming off a loss against the Kolkata Knight Riders, who won the encounter at the Eden Gardens with ease.

CSK's bowling has been quite average and they have leaked a lot of runs, especially at the death. However, they have made up for this with exceptional batting performances. Ambati Rayudu has been the star of the team, having performed in almost every match. MS Dhoni is at his vintage best and is rolling back the years with each performance. Shane Watson and Suresh Raina have been performing well too.

On the other hand, the Royal Challengers Bangalore have won only three out of the eight matches they have played so far, with their third win coming in their previous encounter against the Mumbai Indians at home. Much like CSK, it is their death bowling which has been the problem. However, they made up for it in the last game by restricting Mumbai and not allowing them anywhere near the target of 168. Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, and Mohammed Siraj performed exceptionally well and will look to carry on their form into the match against CSK as well.

Virat Kohli has been the best batsman for RCB once again. Brendon McCullum and Mandeep Singh have chipped in with a few good performances as well, however, Quinton de Kock has been quite inconsistent. He will miss the match against CSK as he is travelling back to South Africa to attend a wedding. Luckily, AB de Villiers, who did not play the previous two games due to viral fever, will return to the side.

RCB will look to win consecutive games for the first time this season and move closer to the top four.

Date: 4 May 2018

Time: 16:00 IST

Venue: MCA Stadium, Pune

If Chennai Super Kings bat first:

Predicted score: 180+

Given the previous encounters in Pune, we could expect another high-scoring match. CSK's strength is their batting and we could expect Watson and Faf du Plessis to attack the RCB bowlers from the word go. MS Dhoni will look to continue from where he left off in his previous match and end the innings on a high once again. We could surely expect them to score more than 180 runs if they bat first.

If Royal Challengers Bangalore bat first:

Predicted score: 180+

Given the nature of the pitch, we could expect the RCB batsmen as well to attack right from the very beginning. CSK's bowlers have not been up to the mark and the Bangalore batsmen will look to make the most of it. With AB de Villiers returning, he will provide the stability in the middle order and could go all the way to finish the innings as well. We could expect RCB, too, to score more than 180 runs if they bat first.

Final prediction:

The head to head between the two sides is in CSK's favour and we expect them to win another match against their arch-rivals. It will be a high scoring encounter for sure, but expect the CSK batsmen to perform slightly better than RCB's batsmen.

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