Despite the hectic schedule of the team’s doctors and the limited options available to the management to put together the perfect lineup, the Delhi Capitals have managed to draw level on points with the Kolkata Knight Riders, the two-time IPL champion team experiencing perhaps their most dominant league-stage run, just past the halfway point of their 2024 campaign.
Although the Shreyas Iyer-led team still has two games remaining, it will be wise enough to take this challenge against the battered Washington Redskins seriously. The previous time the two teams faced off, DC put up a fierce battle and KKR scored a total of over 270. They have yet another reminder from PBKS that no matter how many runs they score, it might not be enough, as the upcoming game is likewise expected to be a run-fest.
In contrast to KKR, DC’s bowling attack is not particularly formidable, and they also lack depth in their batting lineup. However, they have been able to win a couple games lately somehow. Even the match they lost, which was against SRH, was one that they let get away from them.
The final stretch of the league stage looks to be an exciting one, and neither DC nor KKR are currently in a position to drop their guard.
When: 7:30 PM IST on Monday, April 29, 2023
Where: Eden Gardens in Kolkata, India; IPL 2024; Kolkata Knight Riders vs. Delhi Capitals
What to anticipate: Runs have flowed and records have been smashed. This season, the two teams engaged in a run-fest in Visakhapatnam, so it’s doubtful that anything more could happen in the hot and humid Eden Gardens.
Group Vigilance
The Kolkata Knight Riders:
Uncertainty surrounds Mitchell Starc’s availability for the game due to injuries
Strategies & Matchups: Although DC boasts the strongest spin combination in the league, Shreyas Iyer has previously destroyed Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav with relative ease. In the middle overs, the KKR captain can be crucial to the outcome. In a same vein, Varun Chakravarthy has already dispatched Rishabh Pant twice in 28 balls by holding Tristan Stubbs at bay. In the middle overs, he will play a significant role alongside Sunil Narine.
Sunil Narine, Phil Salt, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Shreyas Iyer, Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Dushmantha Chameera/Mitchell Starc, Varun Chakravarthy are the probable members of the Kolkata Knight Riders starting lineup. Effective Replacement: Vaibhav Arora
Capitals of Delhi:
Ishant Sharma and David Warner are unlikely to play in the game due to injuries. There are still questions regarding Prithvi Shaw’s availability.
Strategies & Matchups: DC may be inclined to utilize their left-arm spinner against the hard-hitting West Indian, given Andre Russell has previously had difficulty correctly identifying Kuldeep Yadav’s variations.
The probable starting eleven are: Anrich Nortje/Lizaad Williams, Khaleel Ahmed, Mukesh Kumar, Shai Hope, Rishabh Pant, Tristan Stubbs, Kumar Kushagra, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, and Jake Fraser-McGurk. [Impact Sub: Salam Rasikh]
What they expressed:
Fraser-McGurk has been outstanding from day one, and this is what you want from a younger player—he’s improving with every match. The Washington Capitals captain Rishabh Pant said, “We are taking it one game at a time, but the chances (of making it to the playoffs) are increasing day by day.”
We must enumerate the circumstances and devise more sensible solutions. Witnessing Narine hit the ball is amazing; hopefully, he will continue to produce such performances. Captain of the KKR, ShreyasIyer
