KKR vs GT, Match Preview, Player Stats and Playing XI Updated....

Important News

1. L Das going back to home due to medical emergency in family so he is not available for next few matches

2. S Thakur missed the last few matches due to injury but according to the sources he is fully fit and set to play in Place of Run machine Umesh Yadav

3. Rest no change expected in both Side

4. S Gill and W Saha Open for Gujarat While N Jagdeeshan and J Roy open for KKR

Pitch Reports #Cricbuzz

As many as four 200-plus totals have been scored in only six innings at the Eden Gardens so far, with 222 being the average first innings total. The team batting first has won each of the three matches but those were all evening games and it remains to be seen if the conditions differ for the afternoon match.
The average first innings score at Eden Gardens in the last three years is 175. The teams batting first have won 59.09% of the matches in this period.

Probable Playing XI

KKR

N Jagadeesan (wk), Jason Roy, Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana (c), Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, David Wiese, Shardul Thakur, V Arora, Varun Chakaravarthy.

GT

Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya (c), Vijay Shankar, Abhinav Manohar, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Mohammed Shami, Noor Ahmad, Mohit Sharma

Key Players to Watch/Key Stats

Kolkata Knight Riders

Jason Roy has been in superb form with the willow this year. In the three innings, Roy has 160 runs at an average of 53.33 and a strike rate of 170.21 in IPL 2023. He has also amassed two half-centuries.

Venkatesh Iyer is the best batter for KKR this season. The southpaw has 285 runs at an average of 35.62 and a strike rate of 154.05 so far. Earlier in the season, Iyer also played a sensational knock of 83 runs off 40 balls against Gujarat Titans.

Nitish Rana has blown hot and cold in IPL 2023. However, he played a fine hand of 45 runs in 29 balls against GT last time. Rana can again play an impactful knock against GT.

Rinku Singh pulled off a miracle against Gujarat Titans earlier this season, which is still fresh in everyone’s mind. His overall form has also been terrific this year. In the eight innings, Rinku has 251 runs at an average of 62.75 and a strike rate of 158.86. He also has two fifties.

Andre Russell hasn’t fired at all with the bat this season. However, he can regain his form any time. Moreover, Russell has also picked up five wickets this year.

Sunil Narine loves bowling at Eden Gardens. He has snared 58 wickets at a strike rate of 18.68 and an economy rate of 6.27 in the IPL at this ground.

Gujarat Titans

Shubman Gill He has 284 runs at a 40.57 average and a 142.71 strike rate in IPL 2023. Gill will again look to make an impact against his former franchise.
Gill’s record at Eden Gardens: 13 inns, 370 runs, avg. 37.00, SR 145.10.

Hardik Pandya has 366 runs at a marvellous average of 61 and a strike rate of 173.45 against Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL. Hardik has also taken 11 wickets at a brilliant strike rate of 12.54 and an economy rate of 6.91 against them.

David Miller played a terrific knock of 46 runs off just 22 balls with the help of four maximums against Mumbai Indians in the last game. Overall, Miller has 252 runs at a strike rate of 124.75 against KKR in the league.

Rashid Khan took a hat-trick against Kolkata Knight Riders in the last game. In all, Rashid has 17 wickets at a strike rate of 19 and an economy rate of 6.79 against KKR. Another good outing is well on the cards.

Mohammed Shami has bowled amazingly well this season, particularly with the new ball. He can again trouble the KKR openers if there is some assistance for the pacers early on.

Other intresting Stats and Facts

Head-to-head: Matches 2, KKR 1, GT 1.

Hardik Pandya vs Sunil Narine in the IPL: 56 runs, 37 balls, 151.35 SR. Narine is yet to dismiss Hardik in the competition.

Nitish Rana vs Hardik Pandya in the IPL: 30 runs, 21 balls, 142.85 SR & 2 dismissals.

Mohammed Shami in the powerplay in IPL 2023: 6 wickets, 19 SR, 6.57 eco. & 63.15 dot%.

Rashid Khan will play his 100th IPL game. He has dismissed Andre Russell four times in 31 balls in franchise T20s.

Hardik Pandya has scored 366 runs in 11 innings against KKR, averaging 61 with a strike rate of 173.46. He has also picked up 11 wickets against them at an average of 14.45 with an economy of 6.91.

Sunil Narine has bowled 1442 dot deliveries in the IPL. He needs 11 more to overtake R Ashwin who is currently in the second spot. Bhuvneshwar Kumar (1473) has bowled the most number of dot balls.

Andre Russell is averaging 18 - his second-lowest in an IPL season - with five single-digit scores in eight innings. Not the best time to come up against Rashid Khan, who has dismissed him five times in 39 balls for 54 runs in T20 cricket.

3.6 vs 13.8. Those are Rinku Singh's balls-per-boundary numbers against pace and spin this season. So if you're the Titans captain, do the right thing. Don't give him pace.

Shubman Gill has an average of 59.2 and a strike rate of 143 against spin since IPL 2022. His batting deep into the innings might enable Titans to mitigate KKR's mystery spin threat.

Though right now one of them is not feeling so great.Sunil Narine has an economy rate of 8.9 in IPL 2023. Never in the history of this tournament has he been so expensive. Also, he hasn't picked up a wicket for five matches straight. That's another first for him in the IPL.

Hardik Pandya has a strike rate of 102 against pace this season. This is the second-lowest among all batters who have faced at least 50 balls.

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