IPL 2020

IPL 2020 – KXIP vs KKR – Match Preview & Team Analysis

It will be the first game of the 3rd double-header of this season when Kings XI Punjab takes on the Kolkata Knight Riders in Abu Dhabi in an afternoon game. KL Rahul is the current holder of the orange cap but has struggled to get going in the last few games. Dinesh Karthik is still to make a substantial contribution to KKR this season.

KKR won a game that they should have lost, and their bowling in the second half of the innings will be an encouraging sign for them. Their opening batting seems to be sorted with the inclusion of Rahul Tripathi and Sunil Narine’s much better form with both bat and ball. The KKR team is heavily backing their youngsters, and it has paid dividends so far. One negative for them in the last game is how the middle-order played and Karthik and Russell’s batting form, who is yet to fire.

Another game for KXIP which ended in a disappointment where they once again lost by a considerable margin. For a change, this time, Nicholas Pooran waged a lone battle had scoring 77 off 37 in a chase of 202. All the other batters failed to support the left-hander. In bowling, the young bowlers Bishnoi and Arshdeep were good at the end overs pulling things back by picking regular wickets; if Kings XI loses another game, its as good as their end to this year’s campaign as they cannot qualify for playoffs from then on.

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Key players from both sides:

Batsman – KL Rahul, Nicholas Pooran, Rahul Tripathi, and Eoin Morgan.

KL Rahul, who started well in this IPL, has slowed down a touch, but he is still an important player for the KXIP at the top of the order. If Gayle returns, it will only boost the top-order, and it might help the Kings. Nicholas Pooran had played well whenever he got chances, and we witnessed his true last game when he scored an attacking 77. Tripathi may have settled KKR’s opening batting woes and will be expected to give a good start along with Shubman Gill. Eoin Morgan is a busy player in the middle-order, and his leadership qualities were also on the view in their victory over CSK last game.

All Rounder- Andre Russell, and Sunil Narine.

As there are no designated all-rounders in KXIP and Glenn Maxwell may not start due to his indifferent start, there is no Kings XI player on our list. Andre Russell has not come to party with the bat yet, but Karthik has used him as the designated death bowler and likely to play a crucial role again. Sunil Narine played a vital role in KKR’s win over CSK, scoring crucial runs at no.4 and bowling well at end overs.

Bowlers – Pat Cummins, Varun Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, and Arshdeep Singh.

Pat Cummins completed his overs as early as in 12th over, and this strategy to bowl him at powerplay has worked so far. He will again bowl the majority of his overs vs. KXIP and hope to take a couple of wickets. Varun has been ahead of Narine in the last few games, which shows the confidence that KKR management has in him. The youngsters Bishnoi and Arshdeep Singh were picked of the bowlers for KXIP in their last game, and they even out bowled the premier bowlers in their side.

Battles to look forward

Pat Cummins vs Chris Gayle
Mohammad Shami vs Andre Russell
Sunil Narine vs Nicholas Pooran

Pat Cummins will bowl upfront, and if Gayle plays the game, the competition between the duo will be exciting to watch. If Gayle does not play, how the openers Rahul and Mayank fare against Cummins will be interesting to watch. Mohammad Shami has troubled Russell in the past with his yorkers, but now both of them are in the best of forms. We have to wait and see how this will end up. Nicholas Pooran played a scintillating knock last, and we have to see if KKR uses Narine to bowl against the left-hander as they did with Dhoni.