IPL 2018 KXIP vs KKR: 5 player battles to look forward to between Kings XI Punjab and Kolkata Knight Riders

After strong starts to their IPL campaigns, both Kings XI Punjab and Kolkata Knight Riders find themselves in a bit of a crisis. While KXIP lost their previous game, they are still third in the table having played 1 fewer game than their opponents. They are still not in danger of missing out on the playoffs but they are still in with a chance of making it to the top 2.

On the other hand, KKR lost their previous two games, both against MI and the latest defeat was a mauling at Eden Gardens. With three games left, they are in desperate need of registering a win at Indore and haul themselves up in the points table. In the previous encounter, KKR were comprehensively beaten in a rain-reduced game through a special opening partnership between KL Rahul and Chris Gayle.

As ever, this game will again be decided by how KKR bowl against those two but there will be many individual battles that will ultimately have a big say on the final result of the game. Here is a look at 5 of the most important ones.

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#5 Ravichandran Ashwin v Nitish Rana

The KKR number 4 started off in fine nick but since then he has found it hard to get a substantial score and considering the fact that Nitish Rana bats at number 4, his contribution is going to be crucial.

The left-hander has so far made 240 runs in 10 games at an average of 30 and has recorded a strike rate of 129.72. Due to his batting position, he is most likely going to run into the KXIP spinners straightaway and his battle with Ravichandran Ashwin is going to be an intriguing one.

First of all, the battle between a youngster and a seasoned professional is almost always interesting. Secondly, their battle will almost definitely decide the direction of the KKR innings.

The Indian star has not taken many wickets so far (6 in 10 games) but is the sort of control that he provides that makes him such an excellent bowler. He has gone for only 7.77 runs an over and he would definitely like to stall Rana when he comes up against the left-hander.

#4 KL Rahul v Kuldeep Yadav

Very few batsmen have been able to match up the sort of excellence that KL Rahul has brought to the KXIP top order and a large part of the success that the team has had as a batting unit is due to the scorching starts that he has provided them.

In his last two games, he looked in sublime form (84* and 95*) and he would like to carry that forward in the game against KKR. In the previous game, against the same opponents, he belted 60 off 27 (9 fours, 2 sixes) and helped KXIP canter to a win.

He will be the wicket KKR would be after in the game and the bowler who could be the man for the occasion is Kuldeep Yadav. In the previous game, Kuldeep bowled only 3 balls to Rahul and went for 6 runs (one boundary) and although it is a very small sample, it must be said that he did not get another go at him in the game.

The left-arm leg-spinner might be short on confidence due to the assault from Ishan Kishan in the previous game but he would love to bounce back by taking the wicket of his India team-mate. On the other hand, it is a new challenge for Rahul in the IPL and one he would like to win for sure.

#3 Mujeeb Ur Rahman v Robin Uthappa

The Afghan youngster has been one of the biggest revelations of the IPL so far and Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s ability to turn the ball either way has made it very difficult for most batting sides to really have a got at him.

He is KXIP’s highest wicket-taker so far with a total of 14 wickets and remains the most important constituent of their bowling attack. However, what sets him apart from many others is his economy rate of 6.69 and that is what KKR’s star number 3 Robin Uthappa will be up against.

The right-handed batsman has looked in excellent hitting form but has not really gone on to make the big score that people expect from him. However, he did get his highest score so far against Mumbai Indians two games ago and perhaps that is a sign of the fact that he is on the cusp of getting back on track.

Despite averaging only 24.81, Uthappa has recorded a strike rate of 141.45 and that is something that should come in handy when he comes up against Mujeeb.

#2 Ankit Rajpoot v Chris Lynn

Ankit Rajpoot

KKR’s star opening batsman Chris Lynn has been in poor form of late and has failed to get the team off to fast starts in the Powerplays. However, he must take heart from the fact that his best innings in the tournament (74 off 41, 6 fours, 4 sixes) came against KXIP and he would definitely like to repeat that performance in the game at Indore.

If he does get going, then KXIP will have a long afternoon on their hands and hence, it is the opening battle with Ankit Rajpoot that could well set the tone on how the KKR innings is going to pan out.

The Australian likes to play against pace and Ankit Rajpoot offers a lot of that. However, in addition to his pace, the tall pacer has also proven to be a clever bowler and his clever changes of lengths have often proven to be extremely effective.

In 5 games, he has only gone for 8.05 an over and he has the chance of snuffing out KKR’s designate power-hitter early on. Conversely, Lynn would not take a backward step and that’s what makes it such an interesting battle.

#1 Chris Gayle v Sunil Narine

The battle of the West Indians is going to be the headline act in this game as the two try to outdo each other and give their teams the big advantage they are after. Getting Chris Gayle early could be a big turning point for KKR, while Sunil Narine being hit all over the place by the Jamaican could see the game running away from the visitors fairly quickly.

Gayle has not made any big score in the last two games (8 and 1) but he is averaging 62.60 and striking at 149.51. Those are incredible numbers and considering what he did against KKR in the previous game, his battle against Narine is going to be the battle of the game.

In the previous game, the left-hander could only hit four against Narine amidst all the carnage and that is why this is a battle that could be a match-defining one. Additionally, in the 141 deliveries that Narine has bowled to Gayle, he has got the better of the batsman 5 times and given away only 123 runs.

So, it is quite clear that this is battle that everyone will be looking forward to and whoever wins this one would significantly raise his team’s chances of winning the game.