Sharjah: Two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders will look to seal a convincing victory over struggling Rajasthan Royals in their last round-robin match to advance in the race for the IPL playoffs here on Thursday. With 12 points from 13 matches, KKR are currently fourth in the pecking order, ahead of defending champions Mumbai Indians on net run-rate. Mumbai also have 12 points from 13 matches and have to play a match against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Friday. If both KKR and MI win their last matches, it will boil down to net run rate and this is where the Eoin Morgan-led side (0.294) will get the edge as it currently enjoys a positive run rate compared to the Mumbai outfit. is (- 0.048).
IPL 2021 Full Coverage | the schedule | Result | point tally | orange cap | purple hat
KKR had a mixed bag so far in the second leg of the tournament, winning four and losing two games. While KKR started the second leg with back-to-back victories over Royal Challengers Bangalore and MI before losing to Chennai Super Kings, they came back to defeat table toppers Delhi Capitals.
After a loss against Punjab Kings they beat SRH by six wickets to keep their nose ahead in the race for the final play-off spot. KKR put on an impressive performance in the second half and even their two losses were short, where they lost in the last over. In the batting department, Venkatesh Iyer has been a star performer for KKR in the second leg while Rahul Tripathi has also been impressive this season. Young Shubman Gill scored a brilliant half-century in KKR’s last match, which is good for the team. Nitish Rana, who is at the top of the order, has also done well but skipper Morgan’s form remains a cause for concern.
RCB vs SRH: Royal Challengers Bangalore expected to remain in top-two
The inclusion of Bangladesh’s star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan in the second leg for the first time in the previous match has given a new dimension to the team. In the bowling, mystery spinner Varun Chakraborty has been the team’s favorite while Sunil Narine has also been involved in the wickets.
In the absence of Andre Russell and Lockie Ferguson, who missed a few games following injuries, Tim Southee and Shivam Mavi are the new fast bowling pair for KKR. Fast bowler Pranbhav Krishna did well against CSK to pick up four wickets in the matches he played before conceding 22 runs in the 19th over.
RR are out of the running, finishing seventh in the eight-team standings with 10 points from 13 matches. And coming Thursday, RR would like to dash KKR’s hopes and end their campaign on a positive note.
A perfect game for us, says MI captain Rohit Sharma after big win over RR
RR has been hit hard by the form of their Indian batsmen. Barring Yashvi Jaiswal and to a lesser extent captain Sanju Samson, the Indian batsmen in the team lacked intent. With Mustafizur Rahman as his most experienced overseas signing and young Chetan Sakariya in the ranks, RR’s bowling is a bit thin on experience.
What: Kolkata Knight Riders vs Rajasthan Royals
When: October 7, 2021 (Thursday)
where: Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah
start time: 7:30 PM IS
Kolkata Knight Riders: Eoin Morgan (Captain), Dinesh Karthik, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Karun Nair, Nitish Rana, Rahul Tripathi, Shubman Gill, Harbhajan Singh, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Kuldeep Yadav, Lockie Ferguson, Pawan Negi, M Pranand Krishna, Sandeep Warrier , Shivam Dubey, Tim Southee, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakraborty, Andre Russell, Ben Cutting, Shakib Al Hasan, Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Sheldon Jackson, Tim Seifert.
Rajasthan Royals: Sanju Samson (captain), Liam Livingstone, Evin Lewis, David Miller, Chris Morris, Oshane Thomas, Mustafizur Rahaman, Tabraiz Shamsi, Glenn Phillips, Chetan Sakariya, Riyan Parag, Rahul Tewatia, Akash Singh, Anuj Rawat, KC Cariappa , Yashashvi Jaiswal, Shivam Dube, Shreyas Gopal, Kartik Tyagi, Mayank Markande, Jaydev Unadkat, Kuldip Yadav, Mahipal Lomror.
get all IPL news and cricket score Here
.