Kolkata: Reeling after an agonising two-run defeat at the hands of Chennai Super Kings, defending champs Kolkata Knight Riders will look to quickly redeem themselves when they face the same opponents in the return leg at the Eden Gardens on Thursday.
The loss against the Super Kings came on Tuesday night in Chennai and it will be a tough task for the Kolkata outfit to put the disappointment behind and bounce back against the table-toppers.
The Knight Riders had also lost their previous match against Sunrisers Hyderabad. In comparison, one of the most consistent teams in the IPL, the CSK juggernaut has begun to roll on after winning nine home matches on the trot.
Be it Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s captaincy in clever field settings to bowling changes to the CSK fielders’ all-out approach, the two-time champions ticked all the boxes defending the small target of 135 against KKR.
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They will look to continue their winning run despite the absence of key spinner R. Ashwin owing to injury. The Super Kings’ line-up will finally see a change, as left-arm spinner Pawan Negi or leggie Rahul Sharma could fill in the void.
While Ashwin will be sorely missed at the Eden Gardens, it will brighten KKR’s chances. The Knight Riders have a lot to ponder upon the batting, be it the order or composition.
It is no secret that bowling has been their main strength, and even in the absence of Sunil Narine they did well to restrict the Super Kings to 134 for six. But it was their self destructive batting that messed up the chase.
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The likes of Robin Uthappa, the last edition’s top run-getter, Manish Pandey, Suryakumar Yadav, Yusuf Pathan are yet to convert their starts, and the batting has so far relied heavily on Gautam Gambhir. The skipper, their leading run-getter with three half-centuries, however flopped on Tuesday.
Batting will be KKR’s prime concern when they look to return to winning ways at home, where they are yet to taste victory since the IPL-8 opener against Mumbai Indians on April 8. However, rains may again play spoilsport.
