KKR vs RR: The final week of the IPL league stage couldn’t be more enthralling. KKR take on RR for the 49th game of the coveted league and this for a place in the top 4. SRH and CSK have already qualified for the playoffs but who’s going to take the top two spots? Three teams are currently level on 12 points with MI and RCB still hoping to make it to the top half. Rajasthan take on the Royal Challengers for their final league game while Kolkata face the league leaders Hyderabad. Can both teams qualify for the playoffs? The possibilities of this happening can’t be sidelined. Also, for this possibility to occur SRH and CSK will have to take the first two positions considering Punjab losses all it’s remaining games.
CAN KKR & RR QUALIFY FOR THE PLAYOFFS?
KKR and RR can both qualify, if
RCB win today’s fixture against KXIP
MI beat KXIP
RR beat RCB
KKR beat SRH
BB beat MI and
CSK beat KXIP.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
|
OVERALL |
AT THE EDEN GARDENS |
|||
|
PLAYED |
17 |
PLAYED |
6 |
|
|
KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS |
7 |
KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS |
4 |
|
|
RAJASTHAN ROYALS |
9 |
RAJASTHAN ROYALS |
1 |
|
In the reverse fixture at Jaipur, RR were beaten handsomely by 7 wickets. Can KKR be beaten at the Eden?
VENUE: THE EDEN GARDENS, KOLKATA
PITCH CONDITIONS
6 games have been played at the Eden Gardens this IPL season. 4 have been won chasing and 2 were successfully defended. The pitch assists the batters but hitting through the line from ball one isn’t as easy. Two times 10 runs per over was achieved and both games were won by huge margins. Kolkata beat Delhi by 71 runs & Mumbai beat Kolkata by 102 runs. The pitch doesn’t change much for the night games here at the Eden. Teams wouldn’t mind chasing especially KKR who bat deep. KXIP, on the other hand, will look to post a huge target and defend.
STATS AT THE VENUE
| Matches played |
69 |
| Matches won batting 1st |
25 |
| Matches won batting 2nd |
42 |
| Average 1st innings score |
155 |
| Average 2nd innings score |
143 |
| Highest total recorded |
210/6 by MI vs KKR |
| Lowest total recorded |
49/10 by RCB vs KKR |
TEAM NEWS
KKR scored a mammoth 245 in their previous games against KXIP and are likely to retain the same unit. Javon Searles looked rusty in his debut IPL. If a change has to happen, Searles will be replaced by Tom Curran.
RR have finally figured out a combination that’s working successfully for them. Ajinkya Rahane at number 3 is a bitter pill to swallow. He should open with Jos Buttler. RR have their last 3 games and in T20s momentum plays a significant role. RR will remain unchanged.
EXPECTED PLAYING XI FOR KKR vs RR
KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS
Sunil Narine, Chris Lynn, Nitish Rana, Robin Uthappa, Nitish Rana, Dinesh Karthik(c/wk), Andre Russell, Kuldeep Chawla, Piyush Chawla, Prasidh Krishna, Tom Curran/Jason Searles.
RAJASTHAN ROYALS
Jos Buttler, D’Arcy Short/Heinrich Klassen, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Sanju Samson, Ben Stokes, Stuart Binny, K Gowtham, Jofra Archer, Dhawal Kulkarni, Shreyas Gopal, Jaydev Unadkat.
FANFIGHT FANTASY TEAM FOR KKR vs RR
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PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT FOR
BELLIGERENT BUTTLER
Jos Buttler’s promotion up the batting order has given Rajasthan a massive chance to qualify for the playoffs. Buttler has now gone on to score 5 consecutive fifties. A record he now shares with Virender Sehwag. In 12 game Buttler has now accumulated 509 runs at 56.55. His strike-rate has been an impressive 153.77. How many more can Buttler muster before he leaves for England to represent his country?
On FanFight Buttler is priced at 9.1 credits. Does he make the cut in your team? If the law of averages is considered a failure is on the brink but Buttler doesn’t look like getting out cheaply. Also, Dinesh Karthik is a viable option for the man behind the stumps.
DETERMINED DINESH
Karthik has always been in the reckoning for the responsibility behind the stumps but he’s had one MS Dhoni to topple. While that has been certainly deemed impossible, Karthik has gone out there and performed every year, season after season. This IPL Karthik has been exceptional. He’s come out to bat when the team has needed quick runs and has struck 154.58 runs per hundred balls. His tally for IPL 2018 has gone up to 371, 12th on the run-getters list. Kolkata need to win this fixture and it’ll all boil down to Karthik’s planning and execution.
Karthik on FanFight costs 8.2 credits and can be your game changer. Does he find a place in your Fanfight fantasy cricket team?
DID YOU KNOW?
Jos Buttler has now equalled Glenn Maxwell’s record of 3 consecutive 80+ scores in the IPL.
Sunil Narine has picked twelve 3-wicket, six 4-wicket and one 5-wicket haul in the IPL. He’s also the 7th highest wicket-taker in IPL cricket.
Dinesh Karthik averages 0.83 dismissals per match. The most for a wicket-keeper in the Indian Premier League. Karthik has registered 137 dismissals in 164 matches.
SQUADS
KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS
Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Chris Lynn, Dinesh Karthik(c), Robin Uthappa, Mitchell Johnson, Piyush Chawla, Kuldeep Yadav, Shubman Gill, Ishank Jaggi, Nitish Rana, Vinay Kumar, Apoorv Wankhade, Rinku Singh, Shivam Mavi, Cameron Delport, Javon Searles, Tom Curran, Prasidh Krishna
RAJASTHAN ROYALS
Ben Stokes, Stuart Binny, Sanju Samson, Jos Buttler, Rahul Tripathi, D Arcy Short, Krishnappa Gowtham, Jofra Archer, Dhawal Kulkarni, Jaydev Unadkat, Ankit Sharma, Anureet Singh, Shreyas Gopal, Prashant Chopra, Sudhesan Midhun, Ben Laughlin, Mahipal Lomror, Aryaman Birla, Jatin Saxena, Dushmantha Chameera, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Heinrich Klaasen, Ish Sodhi
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