3 player battles to watch out for in KKR vs RR, Match 31 of IPL 2024 ft. Sunil Narine vs Trent Boult

The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will host the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in a top-of-the-table clash in IPL 2024 at the Eden Gardens on Tuesday, April 16. Both teams have been in fantastic form and have lost just a game each this season.

The Royals played a thriller against the Punjab Kings in their previous game, winning by three wickets and with a ball to spare. Kolkata, on the other hand, had a rather comfortable game against the Lucknow Super Giants, coasting home by eight wickets.

The surface at the Eden Gardens is likely to have decent pace and carry, and that would only add to the spectacle when world-class players from both teams face each other head-on. On that note, let's take a look at the three match-ups that could decide who would win the clash between the top two teams:

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#3 Jos Buttler vs Mitchell Starc

A sensational hundred against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru finally got Jos Buttler's IPL 2024 campaign going. However, he missed the game against Punjab due to a niggle but is expected to be back in the XI against KKR, as per skipper Sanju Samson's statement in the post-match presentation.

With Yashasvi Jaiswal's indifferent form this season, Buttler setting the tone at the top has become even more vital for RR. His face-off against Mitchell Starc has favoured the batter so far. In T20I cricket, Starc has conceded 65 runs off 37 balls against Buttler and has dismissed the right-hander just once.

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#2 Andre Russell vs Yuzvendra Chahal

KKR didn't need the services of Andre Russell the batter in the previous game, but he could make a massive impact against the Rajasthan Royals. While Russell might have struggled against wrist spinners over the years, he has a stunning record against Yuzvendra Chahal.

Russell has faced 41 balls from Chahal in T20s and has scored as many as 81 runs, getting dismissed just once. He will back himself to continue dominating Chahal, but expect the RR leg-spinner to come up with a plan to counter the big-hitting West Indian.

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#1 Sunil Narine vs Trent Boult

Sunil Narine's redemption arc has been magnificent as an opener ever since Gautam Gambhir has been back in the Knight Riders setup as a mentor. Opposition teams will have to find a way to get Narine out quickly as the latter can cause serious damage in the powerplay.

The Royals will want Trent Boult to be on top of his game once again given his good numbers against Narine. While Narine has scored 20 runs off 12 balls from the New Zealand pacer in T20s, Boult has dismissed the southpaw twice. RR could get control of the game if Boult manages to better his record against Narine by dismissing him for the third time in T20s on Tuesday.