Match 2 of the Indian Premier League 2026 season sees Mumbai Indians (MI) welcome Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday. Five-time champions MI haven't won the trophy since the COVID-19 affected season in 2020 and will be eager to avoid their “first match curse" as they chase a record sixth title.
Ahead of the tournament, head coach Mahela Jayawardene said, “The elephant in the room is the first game for us,” addressing MI's now infamous 13-year-long streak of losing the opening game, which dates back to the 2013 season.
The IPL heavyweights will be hoping to break that streak in a fixture that they've historically dominated, winning 24 and losing just 11 of the 35 matches against KKR. However, the Knights have won five of their last seven meetings, indicating a more even match-up in recent past.
Last season, MI suffered another poor start, but recovered well to reach the playoffs, ultimately losing to Punjab Kings in ‘Eliminator 2'. This season they arrive with a significantly strengthened squad, having retained their strong Indian core and adding Quinton de Kock, Sherfane Rutherford, Shardul Thakur and Mayank Markande to the mix.
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2024 champions, KKR, saw their title-defence unfold in spectacular fashion last season, finishing 8th on the table with just four wins from 14 games. This season, the three-time champions splashed the cash on Cameron Green, making the Aussie all-rounder the most expensive overseas buy in IPL history at Rs. 25.2 crore.
KKR have also added New Zealand's explosive opening pair of Tim Seifert and Finn Allen and brought back Rahul Tripathi for a second stint with the franchise. However, the Knights have been hit by a host of injuries, mainly in the pace-bowling department with Harshit Rana and Akash Deep ruled out, while Matheesha Pathirana is expected to miss the opening phase of the tournament.
MI vs KKR, IPL 2026: Date
The Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders match will be played on Sunday.
MI vs KKR, IPL 2026: Time
The Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders match will start at 7:30 p.m. IST.
MI vs KKR, IPL 2026: Venue
The Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders match will be played at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.
How to Watch Live Telecast?
The Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders match will be telecast live on the Star Sports Network channels.
How to Watch Live Streaming?
Fans in India can watch the live streaming of the Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders match on the JioHotstar app and website.
MI vs KKR IPL 2026: Probable Playing XIIs
- Mumbai Indians (MI) Quinton de Kock (wk), Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya (c), Naman Dhir, Sherfane Rutherford, Will Jacks, Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah.
- Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR): Ajinkya Rahane (c), Finn Allen, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Cameron Green, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakravarthy, Vaibhav Arora, Blessing Muzarabani
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