IPL 6: KKR vs CSK - Knight Riders Preview

Smarting from a four-run loss to Kings XI Punjab, the Gautam Gambhir-led Kolkata Knight Riders now have an uphill task ahead of their game against former champs Chennai Super Kings. A number of things have gone wrong for the Kolkata outfit, one of which is their inability to chase low scores. In some ways, the defending champions seem to be following in the footsteps of the Pune Warriors – either the batting or the bowling clicks, but not in unison. If this trend continues in their home game against the Men in Yellow, KKR’s hopes of proving that their 2012 win was no fluke will go up in smoke.

Still, the home side has quite a few things to cheer about. Skipper Gautam Gambhir has been in excellent nick with three fifties in this season already. Barring him, the batting line-up looks extremely shaky, with both veteran Kallis and wicket-keeper Manvinder Bisla woefully short of runs. The story continues with the middle order, where Eoin Morgan & Rajat Bhatia are the only ones who have shown enough pluck to take the attack to the opposition.

To have an outside chance of winning against MSD’s side, Kiwi firebrand Brendon McCullum must be in the final XI. Dutch journeyman Ryan ten Doeschate can be extremely handy with both bat and ball on the Eden Gardens track as he did well here in the last 2 editions – and he would be the ideal replacement for a completely off-colour Yusuf Pathan. On the bowling front, Brett Lee and Lakshmipathy Balaji will shoulder the pace duties, and they would be backed by effective seam-up options in Bhatia and Kallis. Wily spinner Sunil Narine would look to trouble the CSK batsmen on a track that has traditionally offered assistance to spinners, and left-arm spinner Iqbal Abdulla must pair up with him if they are to choke the free-flowing Chennai batsmen. T20 requires a sensible, calm brain at all times, and KKR would do well to remember that.

Pitch Conditions – Eden Gardens may have variable bounce on offer, a prospect neither side might look forward to. Starting off as a batting paradise, it may get a touch slower as the game progresses. I wouldn’t be surprised if both teams open their attack with spinners.

Players to watch out for – Gautam Gambhir has laid the foundation for the rest of the line-up to put up a massive score. The likes of Manoj Tiwary will have to bat around their skipper as well as Eoin Morgan. Narine and Lee will have to bowl accurately and with a lot of venom to destroy the opposing line-up.

X Factor – Debabrata Das. On his day, the young man can tear apart the best of bowling attacks with his ferocious hitting. He is an adept fielder as well, and can be called upon to roll his arm over if required.

Prediction – It is high time KKR shed the “chokers” tag and play sensible cricket. Over-reliance and complacency are their two biggest enemies on the cricket field. As long as they are able to raise their game in all departments to higher levels, and backed by a vociferous home crowd, they should be able to win this one. Expect a humdinger at the Eden Gardens on Saturday!