IPL 2023, KKR vs RR: Here are the key battles

Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals will square up in the 56th match of the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL). Kolkata's Eden Gardens will host the match on May 11. The Nitish Rana-led Knight Riders defeated Sunrisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings after losing to Gujarat Titans. Meanwhile, RR have lost three consecutive matches. There are quite a few interesting player battles on offer.

The KKR spinners have been on a roll in IPL 2023. The trio of Sunil Narine, Varun Chakravarthy, and Suyash Sharma have troubled the opposition. It will be interesting to see if KKR introduces mystery spinner Chakravarthy in front of the dangerous Jos Buttler. Notably, Buttler has fallen to Chakravarthy twice in a span of 13 balls. However, the former's strike rate reads 215.38.

The Knight Riders can use a similar ploy against RR skipper Sanju Samson. The right-handed batter has been perturbed by spinner Narine in the past. Narine has dismissed Samson thrice in 78 balls in the IPL. Notably, Samson has managed just 64 runs off Narine in this regard. The tally includes three fours and a solitary six.

Youngster Yashasvi Jaiswal is currently the second-highest run-scorer of IPL 2023. The RR opener has slammed 477 runs from 11 matches at a strike rate of 160.61 so far. Jaiswal has struck at 166.66 against pacers in the ongoing season, having made the most of the Powerplay. It remains to be seen how he tackles the likes of Shardul Thakur and Vaibhav Arora.

RR will save the best for Andre Russell, who struck a match-winning 23-ball 42 against Punjab Kings. Since Russell has a reputation for choking against spinners, RR could use Yuzvendra Chahal against him. Notably, Chahal has dismissed Russell just once in the IPL. The latter has struck at 216.21 against the leg-spinner (80 runs off 37 balls).

Kolkata's Eden Gardens, which is renowned for its batting-friendly surface, will host this duel on May 11. One could see a high-scoring game. Spinners will come into the match once the surface wears down. Overall, a competitive battle between bat and ball is expected. Star Sports Network will telecast the match, while fans can also live-stream it on JioCinema from 7:30pm IST onward.