Playing 11 of players to have featured for both RCB and KKR ft. Mitchell Starc

Over the years, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have been involved in a heated rivalry in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024.

RCB are coming into this game with a 1-1 record in two games this season, while KKR won their solitary game by four runs against SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH).

As per head-to-head contests, KKR have prevailed on 19 occasions, while KKR has emerged victorious 14 times. The most recent game between the two sides took place on April 26, 2023, where the Knight Riders won by 21 runs.

On that note, let's check out the playing 11 consisting of players who have featured for both RCB and KKR in IPL history.

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Top-order - Chris Gayle, Brendon McCullum, Mandeep Singh

The opening pair for this team will consist of explosive players, Chris Gayle and Brendon McCullum. 'The Universe Boss' played for KKR from 2009 to 2010, and for RCB from 2011-2017. While playing for Bangalore, Gayle slammed the highest-ever individual score of 175* against Pune Warriors India in April 2013. The southpaw slammed a total of 3,626 runs, with 3,163 coming in RCB jersey.

Meanwhile, McCullum started off the cash-rich league in a grand fashion by hitting a sensational 158* off 73 for KKR against RCB in 2008. He made a total of 41 appearances (35 for KKR) for the two teams and accumulated 1,009 runs.

At No. 3 will be Mandeep Singh, who is primarily a top-order batter. His most appearances (40) came for RCB, while he could feature in only six games for KKR. He mustered 615 runs for the two franchises, with a top score of 54*.

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Middle-order - Robin Uthappa, Manish Pandey, Jacques Kallis, Dinesh Karthik (c & wk)

The experienced T20 batter, Robin Uthappa has been one of the finest players in KKR history. In 86 games for the franchise, he scored 2,439 runs and played a key role in the team's title victory in 2014. He also plied his trade for RCB, and scored 549 runs in 31 games.

In 2009, while playing for RCB, Manish Pandey became the first Indian player to hit a century in the IPL. In his two seasons for RCB, Pandey scored 417 runs. Then, he played 55 games for KKR, and amassed over 1,270 runs, while scoring 94 off 50 in the final to help the team lift the trophy.

Dinesh Karthik will be the captain and glovesman of this team due to his leadership experience and track record in the league. He made 61 appearances for KKR and will mark his 48th appearance today for RCB, while scoring over 1,800 runs.

The South African all-rounder, Jacques Kallis, will be the fifth bowling option and a finisher for the team. In 98 IPL games, Kallis scored 2,427 runs and took 65 wickets.

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Bowlers - Mitchell Starc, Umesh Yadav, Vinay Kumar, Iqbal Abdulla

The most expensive pick in the IPL 2024 auction, Mitchell Starc played for RCB in 2014-15. In 27 games, he scalped 34 wickets at an economy of 7.41. Recently, he appeared in his first game for KKR and finished with figures of 0/53 in four overs.

Umesh Yadav and Vinay Kumar are two Indian pace-bowling options for this team. In a total of 94 games for KKR and RCB, Umesh picked up 93 wickets. On the other hand, Vinay scalped 81 wickets in 75 appearances.

The left-arm spinner, Iqbal Abdulla, played 33 games for KKR and 15 for RCB. In total, he picked up 40 wickets.