IPL 2018, KXIP vs KKR: Kings XI Punjab, Kolkata Knight Riders lock horns with eye on play-offs spot

The current season of Indian Premier League is turning out to be a blockbuster affair for all the cricket lovers.  The eight teams are leaving no stone unturned to secure a place in the playoffs of the cash-rich league.

Kings XI Punjab will lock horns with Kolkata Knight Riders on Saturday in game number 44 of IPL 2018. While KXIP have won six of their ten matches, KKR have secured victory in five out of eleven matches.

 Both the teams have lost momentum in their last few matches and will look forward to learning from their mistakes.

Punjab have lost three of last four matches despite building up momentum. The Ravichandran Ashwin led team suffered a defeat at hands of Rajasthan Royals by 15 runs in their previous encounter in Jaipur.

KXIP need to stop experimenting with their batting order because sending Ashwin higher hasn’t reaped rewards. KL Rahul (471 runs in 10 matches) has been firing from all the corners but the other batsmen are yet to contribute to the team.

KKR have some major concerns when it comes to their bowling attack. The Dinesh Kartik led team lost their last match against Mumbai Indians by a staggering 102 runs. The bowlers conceded more than 200 runs twice in this season of IPL.

The fast powers are yet to decimate the opposition team’s batsmen and have given runs at an average of 10.50 runs per over. Andre Russell’s fitness remains a serious matter of concern for Dinesh Kartik

Both the teams have set their eyes on securing a berth in the playoffs and need to win this crucial encounter. 

What statistics have to say? 

Kings XI Punjab and Kolkata Knight Riders have played a total of 22 matches in Indian Premier League. KXIP have won eight matches while KKR staged a win in 14 matches.

The last time the two teams met, Punjab walked away with a win at Eden Gardens in a rain-affected match. 

Teams 

Kings XI Punjab: Ravichandran Ashwin (c), Chris Gayle, Aaron Finch, KL Rahul, Karun Nair, Mohit Sharma, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Barinder Sran, David Miller, Andrew Tye, Mayank Agarwal, Manoj Tiwary, Ankit Rajpoot, Axar Patel, Akshdeep Nath, Yuvraj Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Mayank Dagar.

Kolkata Knight Riders: Dinesh Karthik (c), Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Chris Lynn, Robin Uthappa, Kuldeep Yadav, Piyush Chawla, Nitish Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Shivam Mavi,  Vinay Kumar, Rinku Singh, Mitchell Johnson, Shubman Gill, R., Cameron Delport, Javon Searless, Apoorv Wankhade, Ishank Jaggi, Tom Curran