After getting their tournament off to a great start with an emphatic win over Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) will look to continue their winning momentum in their second game against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). The two teams will lock horns on Thursday, April 6, at Eden Gardens, Kolkata.
Kolkata didn’t get off to the best of the starts in their IPL 2023 campaign as they lost their opening encounter against Punjab Kings by 7 runs (via DLS Method). Chasing a target of 192, KKR were 146/7 after 16 overs, when rain interrupted the match. Consequently, they were found 7 runs behind the DLS par score.
The Nitish Rana-led side will look to bounce back from the defeat and get the first win under their belt. Kolkata have historically had an upper hand over RCB in IPL head-to-head records and will go into the game being confident of the fact that they’ve bundled out Bangalore for the lowest score (49) in IPL history in the past.
Check here 👉 Kolkata Knight Riders vs Royal Challengers Bangalore, Match 9 – Live Cricket Score
On the other hand, it will be RCB’s first away fixture of the season and they will look to replicate their dominating performance from the first game. All of their bowlers came to the part against MI as they restricted them to 171/7 in the first innings and later chased down the target with 22 balls to spare, courtesy of scintillating knocks by Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis.
KKR vs RCB Match Details
Kolkata Knight Riders vs Royal Challengers Bangalore, 9th Match, IPL 2023
Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Date & Time: Thursday, April 6, 7:30 PM IST
Telecast & Streaming Details: Star Sports Network and JioCinema
KKR vs RCB Pitch Report
The pitch at Eden Gardens has historically been a great batting track with spinners coming into the game later on in the innings. There have been a total of 12 T20Is played at Eden Gardens where teams batting second have won on seven occasions. The highest total recorded at the venue is 201/5 by Pakistan against Bangladesh. Keeping the past record in mind, the captain winning the toss will look to bowl first.
KKR vs RCB Probable Playing XIs
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR):
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Mandeep Singh, Nitish Rana (c), Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Shardul Thakur, Sunil Narine, Tim Southee, Anukul Roy, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB):
Virat Kohli, Faf du Plessis (c), Glenn Maxwell, Michael Bracewell, Shahbaz Ahmed, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Karn Sharma, Harshal Patel, Akash Deep, Reece Topley, Mohammed Siraj
KKR vs RCB Probable Best Performers
Probable Best Batter
Virat Kohli:
Having regained his form in all three formats, Kohli started his IPL 2023 campaign on a high with a sensational knock of 82* off 49 balls. He smacked six fours and five sixes in his innings and helped RCB chase down the target of 172 with utmost ease. Coming into the tournament, Kohli has looked hungry for runs and is likely to continue his form against KKR as well.
Probable Best Bowler
Mohammed Siraj:
The right-arm seamer put on a magnificent display of swing bowling with the new ball as he didn’t allow MI batters to let loose in the first game. Siraj will once again look to give a brilliant start to his side with the new ball and pick up some crucial wickets at the top.
Today’s Match Prediction: Royal Challengers Bangalore to win the match
