Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Chennai Super Kings Predictions: Expect a thrilling game in southern derby

Playing in their fifth game of the season Royal Challengers Bangalore will welcome Chennai Super Kings in the 24th game of the season at M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru on 17th April. Both teams have won only two games this season and will be looking to improve that stat. Who will win this game?

The recent victory of Royal Challengers Bangalore against Delhi Capitals by 23 runs has boosted the morale of the team, especially after their consecutive losses. The team aims to keep the momentum going in their upcoming matches. Virat Kohli has been in top form, scoring his second consecutive half-century and a third of the season to help RCB post a competitive total of 174 runs in their first innings. The top order batsmen Faf Du Plessis, Mahipal Lomror, and Glenn Maxwell have also been contributing with runs.

However, the lower middle order has not been performing well, with Dinesh Kartik struggling to score runs and getting out cheaply in his four innings this season. With Wanindu Hasaranga now in the team, RCB has additional depth in their batting order and a boost in their bowling lineup.

In the last match, debutant Vijaykumar Vyshak impressed with his 3 wickets for just 20 runs, along with Hasaranga, is expected to play a crucial role in the upcoming match. RCB's pace attack, comprising Mohammad Siraj, Harshal Patel, and Wayne Parnell, is strong, and they will look to exploit the home-ground advantage and put pressure on the Chennai Super Kings batsmen.

Virat Kohli, Faf du Plessis (c), Mahipal Lomror, Glenn Maxwell, Shahbaz Ahmed, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Wayne Parnell, Wanindu Hasaranga, Harshal Patel, Vyshak Vijaykumar, Mohammed Siraj

The 4-time Champions have had an inconsistent start to the season, losing 2 of their 4 matches and finding it difficult to secure a spot in the top-4. However, they have enough games remaining to bounce back.

In their previous match, the Super Kings fell just short of a victory against the Rajasthan Royals, losing by 3 runs, which left MS Dhoni disappointed. The top order, consisting of Devon Conway, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Ajinkya Rahane, has been in good form, and the team will hope for a good start from them.

The middle order has struggled, with Shivam Dube and Ambati Rayudu yet to find their form. Additionally, the pace bowling attack has been a concern, with Tushar Deshpande being expensive and Maheesh Theekshana and Akash Singh conceding runs in the previous match.

As a result, there will be added pressure on Ravindra Jadeja and Moeen Ali to perform in the middle overs. It will be interesting to see how they line up against strong RCB batting. 

Devon Conway, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ajinkya Rahane, Moeen Ali, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (c & wk), Mitchell Santner, Maheesh Theekshana, Akash Singh, Tushar Deshpande

The M Chinnaswamy Stadium is known for its pitch that favours the batsmen, and the team batting first would want to put up a big score as there is a good chance of a thrilling high-scoring chase. Although there is no safe score on this pitch, the team batting first would aim to cross the 200-run mark. The spin bowlers have done well here but will need to be careful with their line and length. We expect a thrilling game at the venue with two local rivals going head to head but we are betting on men in yellow to get the job done.