IPL 2026: Mumbai Indians' strongest predicted XI against Rajasthan Royals

The Mumbai Indians will be looking to get back to winning ways as they meet the Rajasthan Royals in Match 13 of the 2026 Indian Premier League. They broke a 14-year streak of not winning their opening match when they took down the Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium.

They followed this up with a loss to a strong Delhi Capitals side at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. They now head to the Barasapara Stadium in Guwahati to take on an in-form Royals side, who have won their opening two games.

Here is the best possible Playing XI for MI vs RR:

Top order: Rohit Sharma, Ryan Rickelton (wk), Tilak Varma

Rohit Sharma has found a new lease of life. His brilliant 78 off just 38 balls against the Knight Riders was a vintage display from the former India skipper. He scored 35 against the Delhi Capitals and is expected to continue setting the tone for MI. Ryan Rickelton started off his IPL 2026 campaign with a brilliant 81, putting up a massive 147-run stand alongside Rohit against the Knight Riders.

Tilak Varma has found recent success for the Indian team as a pace-hitter coming in at number 5. Playing at number 3 before that, his numbers had started to wane. He is back at one-drop for MI, but has not been able to make a significant impact, with scores of 20 and 0. Despite this, he is expected to continue.