KKR vs PBKS Match Preview
Phil Salt and Sunil Narine form a dynamic opening partnership, consistently providing the team with explosive starts. Narine has been the top run-scorer for the team this season, although he can be a bit inconsistent. Once he finds his rhythm, it becomes nearly impossible to contain him. It is certain that Salt and Narine will come out all guns blazing during the powerplay.
The middle order boasts some high-quality batsmen, such as Shreyas Iyer, Venkatesh Iyer, and Angkrish Raghuvanshi, who have the ability to adapt their innings as per the team's requirements. The lower order also possesses a great deal of firepower with Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, and Ramandeep Singh.
When it comes to batting depth, KKR surpasses PBKS in every aspect.
Narine and Russell have also been exceptional with the ball, both picking up 9 wickets each. Although Mitchell Starc, the most expensive player in IPL history, is currently struggling, the team has high hopes for him to regain his form in the upcoming matches.
Harshit Rana has been the standout bowler for KKR thus far.
Punjab Kings' batting has been rather ordinary, and the team is hoping for Shikhar Dhawan's swift recovery from his injury before it becomes too late. Sam Curran has taken over as the captain and opener, but he has struggled to match Dhawan's impressive strokeplay.
The other batsmen, including Prabhsimran Singh, Rilee Rossouw, Jitesh Sharma, and Liam Livingstone, have also faced difficulties. However, there are a few positives for the team in the form of Shashank Singh and Ashutosh Sharma.
These two players have been among the top run-getters for the team and have played some remarkable innings so far. On the other hand, the bowlers have performed relatively better. Harshal Patel leads the wicket-taking charts with 13 wickets and has received good support from Sam Curran, Kagiso Rabada, and Arshdeep Singh.
However, the spin attack appears to be lacking, with Liam Livingstone and Harpreet Brar managing to pick up only 4 wickets between them.
PBKS is currently facing a lack of performances from its senior players, which is potentially disrupting the team's balance and hindering the impact that their best-performing players, Ashutosh Sharma and Shashank Singh, could have made.
Weather Report
The temperature is likely to remain over 32 degrees Celsius. No rain is forecast for match day.
Pitch Report
The Eden Gardens has been a batsman’s paradise this season. The average first-inning score here is around 202 runs and 6 of the 8 innings played here have seen over 200 runs being scored. While the pitch does not change much, dew might be a factor in the second half and will therefore influence the toss.
Notable stats
KKR: Massive Scores Are Now Routine
KKR scored 222 runs in the last match, which was their 3rd score of 220+ runs in this season. It is the joint-highest by any team in a single season along with SRH and CSK.
Team News
There are no updates regarding injuries from either side.
KKR vs PBKS Probable 11
KKR Playing 11
- Phil Salt (Wk)
- Sunil Narine
- Angkrish Raghuvanshi
- Shreyas Iyer (C)
- Venkatesh Iyer
- Andre Russell
- Rinku Singh
- Mitchell Starc
- Ramandeep Singh
- Varin Chakaravarthy
- Harshit Rana
PBKS Playing 11
- Sam Curran (C)
- Prabhsimran Singh
- Rilee Rossouw
- Liam Livingstone
- Jitesh Sharma (Wk)
- Shashank Singh
- Ashutosh Sharma
- Harpreet Brar
- Arshdeep Singh
- Kagiso Rabada
- Harshal Patel
Dream11 Prediction
We are backing the Kolkata Knight Riders to win this match. The team has been clinical in its performance and the batting has been especially strong. On the other hand, the Punjab Kings have often looked out of depth, and the top-order batting has been underwhelming, to say the least.
Top Picks
Sunil Narine: Narine is the leading run-scorer for KKR with 286 runs scored at a strike rate of 176.54. He has also picked up 9 wickets.
Andre Russell: One of the best finishers in the IPL, Russell has 155 runs against his name at a strike rate of 184.52. He has also picked up 9 wickets at an average of 14.88.
Sam Curran: Sam Curran has picked up 11 wickets at a strike rate of 13.00 and has also scored 152 runs.
KKR vs PBKS Dream11 Team 1
Keeper: P Salt
Batters: R Singh, S Iyer, S Singh, A Sharma
All-rounders: A Russell, S Narine (C), S Curran (VC)
Bowlers: K Rabada, H Patel, M Starc
