Punjab Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders
The IPL 2021 is in the exciting stages as the teams are all set to fight for the Playoffs spot. In the 45th match of IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders are all set to take on Punjab Kings in Dubai. However, after losing against Mumbai Indians, Punjab Kings are almost out of the tournament and on the other hand, Kolkata Knight Riders are on the “Road to PlayOffs” after beating Delhi Capitals in Sharjah. Apart from it, this match looks to be a blockbuster for the fans and the players.
With the list of the best cricket betting sites, you can familiarize yourself there.
Head to Head Record
The encounter has always been one sided when both the teams have met in the past. Their head to head record is as :
- Matches Played: 28 matches
- PBKS Won: 9 matches
- KKR Won: 19 matches
- Tie: 0 matches
Though, this time, it looks like Punjab Kings will be looking to change their fortunes in this head to head record.
Dubai International Cricket Stadium Record
Dubai pitches are considered to offer spin initially, but the bounce dies down as the match progresses. However, the due factor might also come up.
- Matches Played: 96
- Matches won by Batting first team: 38
- Matches won by Chasing team: 57
- No Result: 1
Punjab Kings
With just 4 wins in 11 matches, IPL 2021, looks all over for the Punjab Kings. However, the team has always given unexpected results and can still qualify if they win their remaining matches and luck favours them for the rest of the matches of other teams too. Besides this, the team combination is always an issue for them.
Predicted Playing XI
KL Rahul (C and WK), Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran, Deepak Hooda, Aiden Markram, Harpreet Brar, Mohd. Shami, Nathan Ellis, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi
Bench Strength
Fabian Allen, Adil Rashid, Mandeep Singh, Sarfaraz Khan, Prabhsimran Singh, Darshan Nalkande, Chris Jordan,, Murugan Ashwin, Ishan Porel, Moises Henriques, Jalaj Saxena, Utkarsh Singh, Saurabh Kumar, Shahrukh Khan
Players to watch out
The openers of Punjab Kings have always fired for them but the middle order has been an issue for them. Their bowling has done well as Arshdeep Singh and Ravi Bishnoi have always taken wickets in between. Form of Chris Gayle and Nicholas Pooran will be a sign of worry for the team.
Kolkata Knight Riders
Currently placed at the fourth position in the points table, Kolkata Knight Riders look on the right path for the Playoffs. After beating Delhi Capitals, the team is placed at the fourth position in the points table and will look to defeat Punjab Kings in their next match.
Predicted Playing XI
Shubman Gill, Venkatesh Iyer, Rahul Tripathi, Nitish Rana, Dinesh Karthik (wk),
Eoin Morgan (C), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakravarthy, Prasidh Krishna, Lockie Ferguson
Bench Strength
Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Kuldeep Yadav, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Sandeep Warrier, Shivam Mavi, Pawan Negi, Tim Seifert, Shakib al Hasan, Sheldon Jackson, Vaibhav Arora, Karun Nair, Harbhajan Singh, Ben Cutting, Tim Southee.
Players to watch out
Four young guns of Kolkata, Shubman Gill, Venkatesh Iyer, Rahul Tripathi and Nitish Rana have done well for the team. Besides them, Dinesh Karthik and Sunil Narine have done an excellent job for the team. In the bowling department, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakravarthy and Lockie Ferguson have been excellent.
Final Predictions
Kolkata Knight Riders look strong against Punjab Kings but Punjab Kings have a history of comebacks when they are in a difficult position. So we predict that Punjab Kings will beat Kolkata Knight Riders so as to stay in the hunt for Playoffs. It looks a bit difficult for the team but KL Rahul will surely motivate the boys to do well.