Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) returned home and got back to winning ways with a complete domination of Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on Sunday. Up next, is the top-of-the-table clash against Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Eden Gardens in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 on Tuesday.
A short turnaround for KKR, which prompted the KKR team management to take a break on the day in-between.
RR, on the other hand, bounced back from their shock loss at home to the Gujarat Titans (GT) to beat the Punjab Kings (PBKS) by the narrowest of margins. Sanju Samson and Co. are not exactly flying high despite occupying the top spot on the IPL 2024 points table.
KKR are second, with four wins and a positive result will catapult them over RR to ascend to the top.
In KKR-RR’s past meetings, the Purple and Gold hold a slight edge with 14 wins, one more than their opponents in pink. The last five clashes though tip the scales in favour of RR, by a 3-2 margin.
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KKR Team News
Openers Phil Salt and Sunil Narine have been given KKR the perfect launchpad for their wins so far and the only loss came when both failed to score big runs. Angkrish Raghuvanshi has shown promise but has thrown away his wicket after being set. But that is his role in the side – to make sure the momentum from the openers doesn’t stagnate. Shreyas Iyer has been key even though his strike rate may be cause for concern but his primary target has been to keep one end steady. Venkatesh Iyer and Ramandeep Singh, along with Rinku Singh and Andre Russell are there to provide the firepower for a strong finish.
With the ball, Mitchell Starc’s three wickets in the last game will fill him with confidence as the Indian pair of Vaibhav Arora and Harshit Rana have gone for runs but also find their names in the wickets column. Spinners Narine and Varun Chakravarthy have controlled the middle overs masterfully, with Russell rolling his arm over if and when he is needed.
KKR Playing XI vs RR
Phil Salt (WK), Sunil Narine, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Shreyas Iyer (C), Venkatesh Iyer, Ramandeep Singh, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Mitchell Starc, Varun Chakravarthy, Vaibhav Arora, Harshit Rana (SUB)
RR Team News
Rajasthan has not depended on one particular player to lead them to victories so far. The likes of Jos Buttler, Riyan Parag Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell and even skipper Samson have stepped up with the bat as Trent Boult, Avesh Khan and Yuzvendra Chahal have done their bit with the ball.
The only concern for RR has been the form of Yashasvi Jaiswal at the top of the order. He has scored just 102 in the first six games, of which 39 and 24 came in the last two games. His strike rate of 137.84 has not been great either.
Injuries in the bowling department have dented RR’s confidence of late with the likes of Navdeep Saini, Ravichandran Ashwin, Sandeep Sharma and Nandre Burger coming in and out of the side.
RR Playing XI vs KKR
Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson (C & WK), Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, Trent Boult, Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Avesh Khan (SUB)
KKR vs RR Pitch Report
A batting paradise for everyone to make merry on, especially with a lightning-fast outfield. Dew may come into play in the second innings with the heatwave warnings in the morning. It might get a bit windy with cloud cover but no rain is expected.
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