KKR vs SRH 3rd Match Prediction

KKR vs SRH Team Previews

Kolkata Knight Riders

Despite playing some excellent cricket last season, Kolkata finished in the bottom half of the points table, failing to reach the playoffs for a second consecutive time. Nevertheless, the team will look to put the disappointment behind them and make a positive beginning.

Gautam Gambhir is back as the mentor of the team and will inject fresh energy and aggression into the squad. That was evident at the auction table as KKR went all in to bring Mitchell Starc into the team’s fold. Starc was in brilliant form during the ODI World Cup and will look to emulate his form.

Supporting him will be Dushmantha Chameera, and Chetan Sakariya, both of whom are quality pacers. The spin department consists of Varun Chakaravarthy, Sunil Narine, and Mujeeb Ur Rahman, both of whom have plenty of experience in the T20 format.

However, the team’s biggest strength lies in its batting. Shreyas Iyer will be headlining a star-studded line-up consisting of Venkatesh Iyer, Nitesh Rana, and Manish Pandey, while Rinku Singh and Andre Russell are arguably the best finishers in the League. 

Getting the best combination on the field is a challenge as KKR grapples with injuries, overseas players that are past their best, and just a couple of Indian polayers that have stagnated. 

Sunrisers Hyderabad

The Sunrisers haven’t been in the best of forms since the last 3 seasons, consistently finishing in the bottom 3rd. In the previous season, the Sunrisers managed to win only 4 matches and finished last on the table.

The Sunrisers have replaced Aiden Markram as the leader of the team with World Cup-winning Captain Pat Cummins. The latter will not only be the key player as a leader but also as the lead fast bowler. He will be supported by the Indian trio of T Natarajan, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, and Umran Malik.

Travis Head is another big addition to the squad as he headlines the top order. The others in the batting line-up are likely to include Mayank Agarwal, Anmolpreet Singh,  Rahul Tripathi, and Abhishek Sharma. The latter was the second-highest run-getter in the latest season of SMAT.

Heinrich Klaasen is likely to reprise his role as a finisher alongside all-rounder Marco Jansen. Sunrisers have brought in Wanindu Hasaranga to headline the spin attack but beside him, there aren’t many quality slow bowlers on the squad. 

SRH has so many quality overseas players that it will have to drop one or two massive names from the lineup. We hope to see Markram, Klaasen, and Cummins start most matches. That would leave them to rotate between Head, Hasaranga, and Jansen for the final slot as per the requirements of the venues.