IPL 2024: Predicting 3 players who could pick up the most wickets in today's RCB vs KKR

Welcome to the cinema. Today is when IPL 2024 takes a backseat and the drama of the tournament's oldest rivalry between Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) takes center stage at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

There's Gautam Gambhir and there's Virat Kohli. KKR have won the last five matches here. Home teams are yet to lose a game in IPL 2024. Mitchell Starc is coming back. In-form Yash Dayal is going to meet Rinku Singh. And both teams are coming off stunning, jail-break last-over wins. Chinnaswamy would be a bouncing and it'd be anything but worth missing.

At the receiving end of it all, though, would be the poor bowlers on each side. They'll come here knowing they are just pawns in the two teams' likely-to-be-successful attempts to score 200 in each innings.

There might hardly be any wicket-takers, but we have tried to predict three of them, here:

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#3 Mitchell Starc

The last time Mitchell Starc visited the Chinnaswamy during the IPL, he was playing for the opposite end, RCB. Now, KKR's most-expensive signing, the Australian didn't get off to the greatest of starts (0/53 in four overs) in their match against SunRisers Hyderabad, specifically Heinrich Klaasen.

However, thanks to the little bit of support that the pitch is offering to pacers, he could have a chance to open his KKR account. He has 12 wickets from 10 matches at the Chinnaswamy at a rare average of 20.42 for a fast bowler.

RCB's top order isn't the best against left-arm pace this season and their lower order of Dinesh Karthik, Mahipal Lomror, and Anuj Rawat hasn't met a bowler of his skillset in executing yorkers in the slog overs yet.

Some early swing and consistency in lengths would be paramount but if there's one bowler who can use all the emotional build-up in his favor at the big stage, it's Starc.

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#2 Mohammed Siraj

Questioned after RCB's defeat to the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Chepauk, Mohammed Siraj impressed all and sundry with his 2/26 against Punjab Kings. Chinnaswamy loves him and he seems to have found a way to be successful here, with his always-improving variations which start from the powerplay itself.

His pace, the usage of angles, swing and seam movement in the powerplay, and the ability to bowl mean bouncers could be perfect against KKR's batters. Shiraj also loves playing against Kolkata. In 12 IPL matches against KKR, he has 13 wickets, including a personal best of 3/8 in 2020 at an average of 24.77.

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#1 Sunil Narine

The pitch is unlikely to help most spinners, especially as RCB try to offset KKR's strengths, but Sunil Narine doesn't count under most spinners. In the 400-run encounter at a similarly anti-spinner pitch at the Eden Gardens, he bowled a four-over spell of 1/19 in the middle overs, temporarily switching off SRH's chase.

He was so impressive that, after the match, former New Zealand cricketer Simon Doull suggested that he had returned to his old action in some shape or form.

For opponents against whom he has played at least five IPL matches, Narine averages the second-best against RCB - 20.04. He doesn't have a great record at the Chinnaswamy but that could change against RCB's out-of-form middle order.