At Eden Gardens on Sunday afternoon, Kolkata Knight Riders take on the already-eliminated Rajasthan Royals in a must-win encounter. With just four games remaining, KKR must win all of them to stay in the playoff race. As Rovman Powell put it, they still control their own fate.
It’s not the position we wanted at the start, but having our destiny in our own hands is still a good place to be. We can’t think too far ahead—we need to focus on Rajasthan Royals and give our best.
KKR’s form has been patchy — sitting seventh in the table, they’ve managed just one win in five home games. The batting has lacked stability, with Rinku Singh and Venkatesh Iyer struggling for consistency, and their opening pair failing to click. Captain Ajinkya Rahane is also carrying a hand injury, although he's expected to be fit for Sunday.
There is some relief in their bowling, where Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy have posed consistent threats with spin.
As for the Royals, their campaign is over following a series of losses, including a demoralising 100-run defeat to Mumbai Indians. With nothing to lose, they remain potential spoilers.
Young Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Yashasvi Jaiswal have shown promise with the bat, but the rest—particularly the likes of Riyan Parag and Shimron Hetmyer — have underperformed. Injuries, including that of regular skipper Sanju Samson, have further compounded their problems.
The bowling unit has struggled for impact, with Jofra Archer and Maheesh Theekshana proving expensive and ineffective.
The head-to-head between the two sides is evenly poised, with KKR winning 16 of their 31 clashes and RR winning 14. Two games have ended in no result.
Probable XIs: Kolkata Knight Riders: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane (capt), Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Rovman Powell, Moeen Ali, Varun Chakravarthy, Vaibhav Arora
Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Nitish Rana, Riyan Parag (capt), Dhruv Jurel (wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Shubham Dubey, Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Akash Madhwal, Kumar Kartikeya
PBKS Look to Consolidate as LSG Seek Lifeline
In the evening clash in Dharamshala, fourth-placed Punjab Kings host sixth-placed Lucknow Super Giants in what could be a virtual knockout in the mid-table scramble. PBKS, with 13 points from 10 matches, are in a strong position, while LSG, with five wins from 11, can’t afford another slip-up.
Punjab’s batting has been their strength. The top order, led by the in-form duo of Prabhsimran Singh and Priyansh Arya, has laid solid platforms. Captain Shreyas Iyer has marshalled the middle order well and found ways to counter short-pitched bowling, enjoying a stellar season so far.
Their bowling attack is equally potent, with Yuzvendra Chahal’s guile, Arshdeep Singh’s swing, and Marco Jansen’s bounce troubling opposition batters.
LSG, meanwhile, are under mounting pressure. Their captain Rishabh Pant has been out of form, and the responsibility has fallen on the shoulders of Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, and Nicholas Pooran. The return of Mayank Yadav to the XI has added firepower to their pace attack, though the rest of the bowling unit has lacked penetration.
Form-wise, PBKS have been more consistent—three wins and a no result in their last five matches, while LSG have lost three of their last five. LSG, however, have a 3-2 edge over PBKS in previous encounters.
Probable XIs: Punjab Kings: Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, Shreyas Iyer (capt), Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Josh Inglis (wk), Marco Jansen, Suryansh Shedge, Harpreet Brar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh
Lucknow Super Giants: Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (capt & wk), Ayush Badoni, David Miller, Mayank Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, Digvesh Rathi, Avesh Khan, Prince Yadav.
