Delhi Capitals vs Mumbai Indians IPL 2025: After two days of unseasonal dust storms disrupted practice sessions in Delhi, calm skies are expected to welcome cricket fans to a high-stakes IPL 2025 clash between the dominant Delhi Capitals and the struggling Mumbai Indians. As the two teams lock horns on Sunday, April 13, at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, both camps have different motivations—but only one can emerge victorious.
Capitals on a Roll, Mumbai in Rescue Mode
Delhi Capitals are soaring at the top of the table with four straight wins, establishing themselves as the only unbeaten side this season. Their campaign began with a nail-biting one-wicket win and has since seen increasingly convincing performances, largely driven by a resurgent KL Rahul. With a first-10-ball strike rate of 180—his best in seven IPL seasons—and a 28% boundary rate, Rahul has been the Capitals’ engine, even when early wickets have fallen.
Mumbai Indians, on the other hand, are desperate. They sit in the bottom half of the table with just one win from five games. Despite being slow starters historically, their concerns this season run deeper. Ryan Rickelton has lacked fluency, and Rohit Sharma’s form has been abysmal—crossing 20 only once in his last 11 IPL innings.
Venue Watch: High Scores Await
The Arun Jaitley Stadium was the highest-scoring venue in IPL 2024 with an average first-innings score of 235. Eight of the 10 completed innings saw teams breach the 200-run mark, and the remaining two nearly did. With similar pitch conditions expected this year, bowlers may once again play second fiddle to the big-hitting batters.
Key Battles to Watch
KL Rahul vs MI Attack: Rahul has scored 950 runs in 18 IPL innings against MI, averaging an incredible 79.16. If he continues this form, MI’s bowlers will have a long evening.
Rohit Sharma vs Axar Patel: Rohit has a poor average (21) and a strike rate of just 91.3 against Axar, who’s dismissed him thrice in 10 games. Expect Axar to bowl early.
Boult vs Faf du Plessis: If du Plessis plays, watch out for his match-up with Boult. The Kiwi pacer has dismissed him four times in 14 encounters.
MI Bowling Woes: MI have the second-worst PowerPlay bowling average (51.83) and the worst death-overs economy rate (11.51). DC, in contrast, have the best death economy at 8.51 and a PowerPlay average of 27.62.
Team News and Tactics
Delhi Capitals (Probable XII): Jake Fraser-McGurk, Faf du Plessis, Abishek Porel, KL Rahul (wk), Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel (c), Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Mitchell Starc, Mohit Sharma, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar
Injury Watch: Faf du Plessis and Rahul missed the optional training but no official concern.
Tactical Insight: With Rohit’s weaknesses against left-arm spin and pace, expect Axar and Starc to feature heavily in PowerPlay overs. If du Plessis is fit, his experience will bolster DC’s already strong lineup.
Mumbai Indians (Probable XII): Rohit Sharma, Ryan Rickelton (wk), Will Jacks, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya (c), Naman Dhir, Mitchell Santner, Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah, Vignesh Purthur
Injury Watch: Jasprit Bumrah is fully fit and bowled in the nets; no reported concerns.
Tactical Insight: MI will lean heavily on Bumrah and Boult to strike early. Hardik may use Santner’s left-arm spin to counter DC’s middle order, but the team’s bowling concerns—especially at the death—remain glaring.
Head-to-Head Record
Matches Played: 35
Mumbai Indians Wins: 19
Delhi Capitals Wins: 16
At Arun Jaitley Stadium: DC lead 7-5
Did You Know?
KL Rahul is the highest run-getter against Mumbai Indians in IPL history.
Rohit Sharma averages a healthy 35.22 at this venue, with a strike rate of 142.15.
DC are currently on a five-match winning streak in IPL— their longest ever.
In IPL 2024, teams scored 200+ in 8 out of 10 innings at this venue.
When and Where to Watch
Date: Sunday, April 13
Time: 7:30 PM IST
Venue: Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi
Live Streaming: JioCinema (free in India)
TV Broadcast: Star Sports Network
