Kolkata Knight Riders will be looking to maintain the good form when they face Royal Challengers Bangalore at Sharjah on Monday.
It was a successful week for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) as they clinched two wins from the jaws of defeat. Dinesh Karthik’s men will face another stern test on October 12 when they come up against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). The winner of this clash will go level on points with Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals.
RCB has been enjoying a fairly decent IPL campaign as they overcame Chennai Super Kings on Saturday. After facing disappointment in the last two seasons, Virat Kohli’s men are on the right track to qualify for the playoffs.
KKR have been blowing hot and cold this season, but they have shown enough resilience to grind out wins. Dinesh Karthik’s return to form in the last game is welcome news for KKR. The Kolkata based franchise is yet to witness swashbuckling innings from Andre Russell. As a batting unit, they are yet to click together in this tournament.
In the bowling department, KKR has not been consistent either, but they have managed to get things right in crunch situations. Sunil Narine has been the standout bowler in the past two games, while Varun Chakravarthy has also been economical. The pace trio of Pat Cummins, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, and Shivam Mavi have shown glimpses of their best in few games.
On the other hand, RCB would be delighted to see Virat Kohli back to his best. The Indian captain scored 90 runs against CSK on Saturday to help his team to post a formidable total on a difficult pitch. RCB has seen individual batsmen shining in every game, so a complete performance from the batting unit is just around the corner.
Meanwhile, the bowling department has impressed for RCB in the last two weeks. Yuzvendra Chahal and Washington Sundar are bowling economical spells that helps other bowlers to put more pressure on the opposition. Navdeep Saini has also found his rhythm. Along with the return of Chris Morris, RCB’s bowling unit is shaping up really well for the rest of the tournament.
RCB and KKR have a chance to end the first half of the tournament strongly on Monday. Considering the recent form of both sides, this clash has all the ingredients to become an exciting game of cricket.
By Kiran Thakare