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Punjab Kings (PBKS) will host Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the second match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 at the Punjab Cricket Association in Mohali on Saturday, April 1,
The Knight Riders finished seventh last year with six wins and eight losses from 14 games. Punjab, on the other hand, were sixth with seven wins and as many defeats. Both sides will be eyeing a better performance this year.
However, both teams will miss some of their key players on Sunday. While PBKS will miss Liam Livingstone and Kagiso Rabada, KKR will be without the Bangladesh duo of Litton Das and Shakib Al Hasan.
While batters are expected to run the show, bowlers will also have a significant role to play in this match. Mohali has traditionally assisted pacers due to the bounce on offer and is likely to remain the same with the IPL returning to the venue for the first time since 2019.
On that note, let's take a look at three players who can pick up the most wickets during the PBKS vs KKR tie.
#1 Lockie Ferguson
New Zealand pacer Lockie Ferguson was traded in by KKR from Gujarat Titans (GT) ahead of the IPL 2023 mini-auction.
He played an important part in GT's title-winning campaign last year, picking up 13 wickets from 12 matches.
Ferguson has some extra pace up his sleeve, which might come in handy on the Mohali wicket. He can hurry the batters and will be crucial for the Knight Riders with the new ball against Punjab Kings.
#2 Arshdeep Singh
PBKS seamer Arshdeep Singh has been one of the best death bowlers in the country in the last couple of IPL seasons.
The impressive performances also led to his India debut and he was the Men in Blue's highest wicket-taker in the ICC T20 World Cup 2022, claiming 10 wickets in six matches.
Punjab skipper Shikhar Dhawan will heavily rely on the left-arm pacer to deliver the goods with the new ball and at the death.
The only concern, however, is that Arshdeep has been out of action for quite some time due to an injury. If he gets his rhythm early, the left-arm pacer will be a tricky customer to deal with.
#3 Sunil Narine
While Mohali's surface is known to assist pacers, Sunil Narine certainly has an edge over others to return with the maximum wickets given that he has multiple variations in his armory to outsmart batters.
The West Indian spinner is used to these conditions and knows how to reap the benefits on such tracks.
KKR will heavily rely on Narine to pick up the bulk of the wickets as they start their IPL 2023 campaign.
