Following five consecutive defeats, things are looking a bit desperate for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022. To keep their Playoffs hopes alive, Shreyas Iyer's men probably need to all their remaining five league games. On Monday night, they will lock horns against an in-form Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Match 47 of IPL 2022 at the Wankhede stadium, Mumbai.
Apart from Andre Russell's resurgence as a premier all-rounder and Sunil Narine's bowling form, little has worked for the Men in Purple this season. They began the competition on a high note, winning three out of their first four games, but faltered later as other teams began to exploit their weaknesses. The inconsistency of their openers, the poor form of Varun C., and the inability of their pacers – barring Umesh Yadav – to strike in the Powerplay, have hurt their progress significantly.
In order to go past an all-round team like Rajasthan in this crucial encounter, they need more than one factor to click on their favour.
Rajasthan, on the other hand, have walked on thin ice so far in this IPL to have won six out of nine games. Despite their lack of depth in the batting, they have continued with their ultra-aggressive approach courtesy the swashbuckling hitting of Jos Bullter, who already has three centuries in this season. The bowling, too, has become a force to reckon with. The spinners – Yuzvendra Chahal and R. Ashwin – have, in particular, been brilliant in the middle overs.
Their defeat against Mumbai Indians in the last game came at a wrong time. Against Kolkata, Sanju Samson's men will like to bounce back and continue with their aim of a top-two finish.
Likely XIs
Kolkata Knight Riders: Aaron Finch, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer (c), Nitish Rana, Baba Indrajith (wk), Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Umesh Yadav, Tim Southee, Harshit Rana
Rajasthan Royals: Jos Buttler, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson (c & wk), Daryl Mitchell, Shimron Hetmyer, Riyan Parag, R. Ashwin, Trent Boult, Prasidh Krishna, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Sen
Fantasy tips
- Back the power-hitters – Finch, Rana, Buttler, Hetmyer – to come good at Wankhede
- Against the out-of-form Kolkata line-up, expect Chahal and Ashwin to take bulk of the wickets.
- Rinku has batted well in the limited opportunities he has got in KKR colours these season. Pick him in your fantasy side.
Where to watch
Live streaming of Match 47 of IPL 2022 between Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) will start at 7.30 PM IST on April 30. You can watch the match on the Star Sports Network and Hotstar.