The troubled Kings XI Punjab take on the rejuvenated Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL’s match 24 at Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi. Here is our analysis:
KXIP’s SWOT analysis
Strengths: KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal have got a lot of runs. And Nicholas Pooran proved his worth with a quick-fire fifty in the last match. If they bring in Chris Gayle to replace Glenn Maxwell, that might bring a change of pace in the rest of the line-up.
Weaknesses: KXIP have made too many changes in the XI. In the last two matches, they made three changes. This has probably caused confusion and insecurity. KL Rahul should settle upon a playing XI that works and stick with them for the rest of the season. Too many changes never seem to yield results. Rahul should follow MS Dhoni’s mantra in this regard.
Opportunities: KXIP have been so shoddy that they can only go up from here. A win against KKR would be a confidence booster.
Threats: They are more or less out of the play-off race. With consistently weak performances, two points and a net run rate of -0.431, only a miracle can cause a total turnaround.
KKR’s SWOT analysis
Strengths: The Indian core of Shubman Gill, Nitish Rana, Rahul Tripathi, Shivam Mavi, Kamlesh Nagarkoti and Varun Chakravarthy have made valuable contributions. This has taken pressure off the overseas players. Sunil Narine seems to have finally found his bowling form.
Weaknesses: The KKR skipper needs to join the party. Dinesh Karthik has just 49 runs from five matches. Also, Pat Cummins has only two wickets in the same number of games. These two need to do much better if this is to be KKR’s year.
Opportunities: Karthik could try out Lockie Ferguson. The Kiwi pacer has 51 wickets from 47 T20 matches with best figures of 4/26. He bowls at a pace that can rattle even the best batsmen.
Threats: Eoin Morgan, Andre Russell, Narine and Cummins need to win matches for KKR. Otherwise, their campaign will fizzle out quickly.
Head to head:
Matches played: 25
Kings XI Punjab: 8
Kolkata Knight Riders: 17
Last five matches (most recent first):
Kings XI Punjab: L-L-L-L-W
Kolkata Knight Riders: W-L-W-W-L
Deccan Herald’s Dream XI
Shubman Gill, Rahul Tripathi, KL Rahul, Dinesh Karthik (c & wk), Nicholas Pooran, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Pat Cummins, Ravi Bishnoi, Shivam Mavi, Mohammad Shami
Ground conditions
The temperature should be around 35 degrees celsius. The humidity should be about 35%. It will be sunny with a gentle breeze.
Impact player for KXIP
Nicholas Pooran: He has smashed the fastest fifty in IPL 2020 and has the second-highest number of sixes this season. However, he needs middle- or top-order support to win matches.
Impact player for KKR
Andre Russell: His batting may not have come good so far but his bowling is encouraging. The all-rounder is KKR’s second-highest wicket-taker with five scalps and has bowled economical spells when needed. Against the hapless KXIP bowling, Russell can find his touch.
How to watch
The match will be broadcast live on the Star Sports network. Viewers can also catch the action online on Disney+Hotstar. The match begins at 3.30 PM IST.
