In the 36th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) will take on Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru tonight i.e. Wednesday, April 26 at 7:30 PM IST.
RCB are on a roll, having won two games in a row. The key players in these victories have been Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell, Mohammad Siraj, and Harshal Patel. With bat and ball, these four have risen to the fore. In Faf’s absence, Virat Kohli is also leading admirably and providing a good example. The 2016 IPL finalists’ only problem is their weak middle order. Shahbaz Ahmed, Mahipal Lomror, Suyash Prabhudesai, and Anuj Rawat have all struggled to get off to a good start. If RCB are eager of going to the distance in the IPL, the middle order batter issue must be resolved, soon.
Meanwhile, KKR’s pace bowling and top-order batting have been abysmal, to put it mildly. The rival teams have humiliated Umesh Yadav, Kulwant Khejroliya, and Shardul Thakur. KKR would have been in a lot more trouble if it hadn’t been for the spinners’ heroics. Batting has been a massive disappointment, with only Rinku Singh shining brightly. However, with the match being played at a batting paradise, the KKR batters must take full advantage of this and aim to get in some decent form. Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, and Jason Roy can go berserk with short boundaries, which will give KKR supporters some hope moving forward in the tournament. At Banglore, the Nitish Rana-led team will be eager to bounce back and win again.
Head-to-Head:
KKR lead the head-to-head battle versus RCB, having played 31 games, with the two-time IPL champions winning 17 and losing 14. Moreover, in their last encounter at Eden Gardens earlier in April, KKR defeated RCB by 81 runs.
Where-to-watch:
OTT: JioCinema