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Preview: M48 - KKR vs RCB
16 May, 2016
Preview: M48 - KKR vs RCB
16 May, 2016
What
Match 48 of VIVO IPL 2016 will see the Royal Challengers Bangalore pitted against the Kolkata Knight Riders.
Both teams need a win as badly as the other; with no team certain of a Playoff berth at this stage, every win will make the job of teams only easier as the tournament heads towards the business end. Both teams come into this match at the back of resounding wins; KKR thrashed Rising Pune Supergiants in a rain-affected contest at the Eden Gardens, while Royal Challengers Bangalore decimated the Gujarat Lions by a margin of 144 runs and must be feeling supremely confident.
KKR currently sit among the top two teams with 14 points, courtesy 7 wins from 11 matches, while RCB are in the bottom half of the pack with 10 points from 11 matches.
When
16 May 2016, 2000 Hrs IST
Where
Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Weather
Temperature: Max 32°c, Min 30°c
Humidity: Max 72%
Wind: 20kmph
The Protagonists
KKR have a few men-in-form on the batting front; captain Gautam Gambhir and Robin Uthappa are the team’s top two run-getters and the men who have generally set the tone for the innings. Yusuf Pathan has hit a purple patch; he has struck the ball well, has made match-winning contributions and is high on confidence too. On the bowling front, Andre Russell has caused plenty of damage and is the team’s leading wicket-taker, but with Kolkata likely to dish out a spinner-friendly surface, the focus will be on Sunil Narine, Piyush Chawla and Shakib al Hasan.
In the RCB line-up, how can one look at anyone other than the two supermen – Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers – especially after their out-of-the-world performance against the Gujarat Lions on Saturday evening. Between them, Virat and de Villiers have contributed sixty percent of RCB’s runs. Do not discount Chris Gayle too, for the Eden Gardens is one of his favourite venues other than the Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Head to Head
Prior to this season, the head to head between Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bangalore stood at eight wins apiece. However, KKR now have the edge – courtesy their 5 wicket win over RCB in Bengaluru earlier this season.
In matches in Kolkata, KKR have a 4-2 win-loss record against RCB.
Trivia
In the five matches Andre Russell has played at the Eden Gardens this season, he has picked up 10 wickets at a strike-rate of 9.60. His performance equals Sunil Narine’s record for most wickets taken at the Eden Gardens in an IPL season; the spinner had picked up 10 wickets in the six matches he had played in each of the 2012 and 2013 seasons.
Andre Russell has picked up 15 wickets so far in VIVO IPL 2016 – 9 of which have been of batsmen dismissed for single-digit scores. No batsmen has dismissed batsmen for no score more than Russell, who has sent five batsmen packing before they’ve opened their account.
Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers will be aware of their dismal records against the Kolkata Knight Riders; Kohli averages 23.92 from 14 innings against KKR, while de Villiers averages 19.78 from 12 innings.
Yusuf Pathan averages 132.50 with the bat in VIVO IPL 2016. His scores in the last four innings read: 37 not out, 63 not out, 19 not out and 60 not out.
Despite the five single-digit scores behind him, Chris Gayle must be looking forward to playing at the Eden Gardens. In the four IPL innings he has played for RCB at the Eden Gardens, he has scores of 102*, 86, 6 & 96.
What Next
KKR’s next opponent will be the Gujarat Lions; the two teams clash in Kanpur on May 19. Royal Challengers Bangalore meanwhile head back to Bengaluru for their home match against Kings XI Punjab, scheduled to be played on May 18.
