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Date – 11th April 2013
Time – 4.00 p.m (IST)
The Royal Challengers’ skipper sparkled with the bat against the Sunrisers Hyderabad with a brilliant innings of 94*, thereby taking Royal Challengers to a comprehensive seven-wicket victory. Kolkata Knight Riders, on the other hand, lost the game against Rajasthan Royals by 19 runs. Royal Challengers are looking for a second consecutive victory as that would regain the momentum for them, while the defending champions would look to put right the errors, and come back strongly against the Challengers.
For the Challengers, it was a perfect display against the Sunrisers. Virat Kohli batted brilliantly along with AB de Villers, as the duo put on a wonderful partnership after the loss of Chris Gayle in the 8th over. Virat Kohli took the responsibility in a big match and played a magical innings and ensured he stayed till the end of the match. Royal Challengers’ bowlers did a pretty good job to restrict the Sunrisers to 160-odd runs, on a perfect batting strip. At the moment, it would be interesting to see the bowling combination against Knight Riders – whether he would stick with the same squad, or leave out RP Singh for tomorrow’s match.
Kolkata Knight Riders, on the other hand, would be extremely disappointed with the outcome against the Rajasthan Royals. Morgan was the only man to have offered resistance to the fast-bowling as the rest of the batsman crumbled. They couldn’t resist the uneven bounce, and the pace of Tait and Shukla. Gautam Gambhir, though getting the combination right, failed to execute the strategy.
Pitch and Conditions
As we saw in the last game against the Sunrisers, the wicket looks firm and good for batting. Both sides have a formidable batting line-up. The condition at Chinnaswamy stadium is warm and there is a possibility of showers late night. Since the match begins at 4’o clock, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to bowl first.
Players to watch out for
Morgan – He scored a brilliant half-century against Rajasthan Royals. He looks in good rhythm and is confident of performing, especially in crunch situations. He could be a dangerous batsman, especially in chasing, as he has got wide-range of shots. He has the ability to pick the gaps continuously, and that’s where he can be dangerous batsman.
AB de Villers - He shared a constructive partnership of 49 runs with Virat Kohli in just 35 balls, – setting a platform for the win. Though he made only 15 runs, he struck two blistering boundaries to up the ante. He played just one match, and he could be a dangerous batsman as the tournament progresses. It’s hard to stop AB de Villers, when he is in remarkable form.
Prediction – Royal Challengers and Knight Riders had contrasting games. However, the Bangalore wicket has favoured the batsman as we witnessed the last match against the Sunrisers. Royal Challengers looks a better side than the Knight Riders. However, the Knight Riders would bounce back strongly, and the Challengers would require an extraordinary performance to win against the defending champions. Unless the top-order fires for the Royal Challengers, Kolkata Knight Riders are favourites to win this match.
