The two teams have faced each other 14 times so far and KKR clearly have the edge over Sunrisers as they have won on nine occasions.
Kolkata Knight Riders will look to dominate an out-of-form Sunrisers Hyderabad in the second qualifier of the 2018 edition of the Indian Premier League at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Friday. While SRH finished as table-toppers after the league stage, KKR were third on the table. But if recent form is something to go by, the Knight Riders look set to make it to the finals.
Hyderabad come into this match on the back of four consecutive losses, the most recent one being a 2-wicket defeat against Chennai Super Kings in the first qualifier. After reducing CSK to 62/6 after 12.3 overs, SRH didn’t have any answer to a fabulous innings of 67 not out from Faf du Plessis which took Chennai to victory.
On the other hand, Kolkata are the in-form team with four wins on the trot, one of which came against Hyderabad as KKR defeated them by five wickets in their last league game. In the eliminator against Rajasthan Royals, the Knights showed great temperament to strangle the Royals to win by 25 runs. Dinesh Karthik, Andre Russell and Piyush Chawla were the main architects of that victory.
But in a high pressure knockout game, KKR won’t make the mistake of taking the mighty Sunrisers lightly as they boast of the best bowling line-up in IPL 2018. However, their middle order has been a cause of concern for them as they are heavily reliant on their top 3.
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On the other hand, Kolkata look a more balanced unit with everyone contributing at some stage or the other. With the presence of Andre Russell in the middle order, they generally end up getting 25 runs more than the expected total. And their bowling is in safe hands too with Sunil Narine, Piyush Chawla and Kuldeep Yadav spinning a web against batsmen.
Match Details:
Timing – 7 pm
Venue – Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Where to watch – Star Sports 1 and Star Sports HD
Head to head
The two teams have faced each other 14 times so far and KKR clearly have the edge over Sunrisers as they have won on nine occasions while Hyderabad have triumphed in five games.
Team News
With all to play for, both the teams are expected to play with the same XI that took the field in their last respective outings.
Prediction: Who will win?
Sunrisers have really struggled in their last four matches as they have ended on the losing side. On the other hand, the Knight Riders have peaked at the right time. They have four consecutive wins and will be playing in home territory. All this makes KKR favourites to win and set up a final clash against Chennai Super Kings.
Betting odds
According to oddschecker.com, the odds are placed at 11/10 for Hyderabad and 8/11 for Kolkata.
Eden Gardens pitch report
The Eden pitch has always supported the spinners and it is expected to be the same for the second qualifier as well. With both teams heavy on spin, it should be a low-scoring thriller, something we associate very often with SRH.
Moneycontrol Dream 11:
Sunil Narine, Shikhar Dhawan, Kane Williamson, Robin Uthappa, Shubman Gill, Dinesh Karthik, Andre Russell, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rashid Khan, Kuldeep Yadav, Siddarth Kaul
Players to watch out for:
Rashid Khan (SRH) – The young Afghan has been a sensation throughout the season. And the Eden Gardens pitch will assist this leg-spinner who has the knack of picking up wickets at will. He will play a crucial role in Hyderabad’s fortunes in the second qualifier.
Sunil Narine (KKR) – He is an important player for Kolkata as he gives blazing starts at the top of the order while batting and gives them the breakthroughs at crucial times with the ball. Narine is a complete package and a player to watch out for.