Kolkata Knight Riders will be desperate to halt their five-match losing streak when they take on Rajasthan Royals tonight at the Wankhede Stadium.
With just three wins from nine encounters, the Shreyas Iyer-led KKR are in a spot of bother. They have to win their remaining five games to keep alive their chances of making the playoffs. If KKR lose today, they will equal their 2019 record of losing six matches in a row. In 2009 IPL, they lost nine consecutive matches.
KKR’s biggest concern is getting the right combination. So far, Shreyas has effected 13 changes in pursuit of the ideal team combination, but nothing has clicked. The KKR skipper has promised to continue with the same XI after their loss to Delhi Capitals in their previous game on Thursday at the same venue.
All-rounder Venkatesh Iyer and mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy have been a major disappointment for KKR. Iyer has just 132 runs in nine games, Chakravarthy, who was dropped for KKR’s last game, has claimed just four wickets in eight games at an economy rate of 8.82.
RR, on the other hand, are well on course to seal their playoff berth. The Sanju Samson-led team suffered just their third defeat on Saturday when they lost to Mumbai Indians at the DY Patil Stadium.
The last time RR and KKR met each other at Brabourne Stadium, it was a night to remember for the former. Opener Jos Buttler scored a century, while leggie Yuzvendra Chahal claimed a hat-trick that dismantled KKR’s chase.
