Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders Prediction & Match Preview – IPL 2026, 2nd Match

Mumbai Indians welcome Kolkata Knight Riders to Wankhede Stadium on Sunday, 29 March, for the second match of IPL 2026. It is an evening game, starting at 7:30 pm local time.

Mumbai’s squad lists Hardik Pandya as captain and includes Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Quinton de Kock, Ryan Rickelton and Will Jacks, with Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult and Deepak Chahar in the bowling group. Kolkata’s squad features Ajinkya Rahane, Rinku Singh, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakaravarthy, Cameron Green and Finn Allen, along with Matheesha Pathirana and Harshit Rana.

Wankhede is known as a high-scoring ground thanks to its true bounce, fast outfield and short boundaries. New-ball bowlers may find some swing early, but conditions steadily favour the batters and dew can make the ball hard to grip later. Teams therefore tend to chase here, and our preview backs Mumbai Indians to win.

Pitch report

Wankhede Stadium has a red-soil pitch with true bounce and good pace, so stroke play comes naturally. Fast bowlers can get swing and bounce in the powerplay before the surface settles for batters. The outfield is quick and the boundaries relatively short, spinners get limited turn, and dew in evening games makes chasing easier.

Weather

Mumbai should be warm and slightly humid at 7:30 pm, with temperatures of roughly 27–29 °C, mostly clear skies and little chance of rain. A coastal breeze may offer some relief, but humidity will be noticeable as the game goes on.

Expected scores

• 1st innings: 180–200
• 2nd innings: 175–195

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