Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will square off against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the 56th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 at the iconic Eden Gardens Stadium in Kolkata on Thursday (May 11). Notably, this would be the first time the two teams will meet in the IPL 2023.
Speaking of the previous matches of both teams, KKR defeated Punjab Kings (PBKS) in their last game, whereas RR suffered a defeat at the hands of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). Although Nitish Rana (51) was the top-scorer for the Kolkata-based side in the last-over thriller, Andre Russell stole the show with his quickfire 42 off just 23 deliveries and played a significant role in KKR’s win. Among bowlers, Varun Chakravarthy picked up three wickets for his side in the first innings. At the same time, despite Jos Buttler‘s sensational 95 runs off 59 balls and Sanju Samson‘s powerful 66-run knock, RR failed to defend the mammoth 214-run total and eventually lost the contest. Yuzvendra Chahal’s four-wicket haul for Rajasthan also went in vain.
KKR are currently placed at the sixth position of the IPL 2023 points table and would look to break into the top five when they face Rajasthan on Thursday. On the other hand, RR sit at the fifth spot and will eye the third position by registering a win against Kolkata.
Pitch report:
The track at Eden Gardens has always favoured the batters. However, it also assists the spinners as the game progresses. A high-scoring match is expected to take place at the venue, and the dew factor will also come into play as well.
Probable XIs:
Kolkata Knight Riders: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana (c), Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Shardul Thakur, Vaibhav Arora, Harshit Rana, Suyash Sharma, Varun Chakaravarthy
Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson (c/wk), Joe Root, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Sen, Sandeep Sharma, Trent Boult, Yuzvendra Chahal
Head-to-head record
Played: 27 | KKR won: 14 | RR won: 12 | No result: 01
Match Prediction:
Case 1:
- KKR wins the toss and bowls first
- Powerplay score: 55-60
- RR total: 185-195
Case 2:
- RR wins the toss and bowls first
- Powerplay score: 50-55
- KKR total: 180-190
Team bowling first to win the contest.