IPL 2018, KKR v RR: 5 players battles to look forward to in the Eliminator

The Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals will fight it out tonight in this year’s Eliminator at the Eden Gardens tonight. As everyone knows, it is a high stakes game in which the losing team gets eliminated from the tournament and there is no doubt that it is going to be a closely fought game. That being said, KKR will start as favorites due to their record of having beaten tonight’s opponents home and away and also because they will be playing at their home ground.

In addition to that, RR’s premier opening batsman Jos Buttler went back to England last week and that has severely dented the side’s batting firepower. Despite that, RR completed a fantastic win against Royal Challengers Bangalore to get this far and they have players in the side, who can make the difference on the big occasion. The game will ultimately come down to some of the individual battles that will take place tonight and here is a look at 5 of the most important ones.

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#5 Sunil Narine v Rahul Tripathi

He might have been misused for the majority of the tournament but the return to the top of the order has helped Rahul Tripathi become a dangerous player again and tonight, he will be a key player for RR. In his previous game, he made a superb unbeaten 80 against RCB to help his team get a fighting score and he would want to repeat the performance against KKR tonight. Considering his prowess as a belligerent hitter, KKR would like to remove him early and the man for the job could well be their star spinner, Sunil Narine.

The Trinidadian has been one of the IPL’s best performers for 6 seasons now and in a crunch game like an Eliminator, he is the sort of bowler who can deliver a hammer blow early on to the opposition. Having taken 16 wickets already at an economy rate of 7.62, he is exactly the sort of bowler who would be a big challenge for Tripathi and it is going to be a crucial battle in the larger context of the game.

#4 Robin Uthappa v Ish Sodhi

Ish Sodhi

He is supposed to be one of the pillars of the KKR batting line-up but Robin Uthappa has not been able to get going in this season of the IPL and only 1 half-century (54) is a disappointing return for a batsman of his quality. That being said, he has often got starts and has demonstrated that he is striking the ball as good as he ever has. Something that has come to notice is his struggles against and although he has attacked the spinners, he has perished against them as well.

He is a key player for KKR and tonight might be a great time for him to get back into form with a substantial knock. The RR bowler who might be the best antidote to Uthappa could be Ish Sodhi, who has been brilliant for the Rahane-led side ever since he made his way into the team. He has provided them with the sort of control that they had needed and in 5 games so far he has picked up 5 wickets. However, it is his economy rate of only 6.31 that makes him a standout performer and tonight, Uthappa would need to play really well to take control of the KKR innings while Sodhi is in operation.

#3 Kuldeep Yadav v Sanju Samson

Kuldeep Yadav

When these two sides met at the same ground 8 days ago, KKR spinner Kuldeep Yadav destroyed RR with a spell that saw him pick up 4/20 in 4 overs. RR crashed to 142 all out and the game was pretty much over. However, it is a new game and the left-arm leg-spinner would need to start afresh. That being said, he is still going to be the man to watch out for as far as RR are concerned. In that game, RR wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson was dismissed by Sunil Narine and in tonight’s game, he would go head to head against Yadav again.

He might like pace more than spin but he is not a poor player of the turning ball and hence, his battle against KKR’s star spinner promises to be a high-voltage on. Samson was dismissed for a duck in his previous game against RCB and there is no better time for him to get back to form than in this knockout game against a team, RR have struggled this season. It is a battle that could decide the fate of the RR batting effort.

#2 Chris Lynn v K Gowtham

Chris Lynn

The KKR opening batsman seemed to have hit prime hitting form in his previous game against the Sunrisers Hyderabad and if Chris Lynn can carry on in the same vein, then RR might find themselves in a soup quite early. The Australian has been a consistent performer, albeit at a strike rate that is not up there with what people have come to expect from him and his wicket tonight will be vital for RR’s chance tonight.

As everyone knows, Lynn is excellent against pace but it is against spin that he seems to have trouble and has recorded a strike rate of less than 100 against spin bowlers. So, the logical thing for RR to do would be to turn to their all-rounder K Gowtham in the Powerplays and let him have a go at the right-hander. Not only is that over potentially going to be a relatively cheap one but there is the chance of the off-spinner getting the prized wicket. Gowtham has done well in the Powerplays and his battle with Lynn is going to be a big highlight in tonight’s game.

#1 Dinesh Karthik v Jofra Archer

Jofra Archer

The death overs of a T20 innings are crucial and games often turn on their heads in that period. Either the batting sides score big runs or the bowling sides pull it back through their death bowlers. In Dinesh Karthik, KKR have a batsman who has the ability to go absolutely ballistic in the death overs and if he does get to bat, then it could make for some very entertaining viewing for all fans. He has recorded a brilliant strike rate of 149.48 and has the ability to take the game away from the opposition in the rear end of the innings.

That being said, tonight he will be up against one of the best death bowlers in the world in RR’s Jofra Archer and that makes the battle between the two a potentially match-defining one. He has the pace, skills, varieties and intelligence to hold his own against any batsman. He has taken 13 wickets so far in 9 games and has recorded an economy rate of 8.38. He will relish the challenge posed by Karthik and it promises to be an epic battle.