IPL 2017, Preview, KKR Vs MI: Kolkata, Mumbai Face Off In Wrangle For Top-Two Finish
Kolkata Knight Riders are hoping for a top-two finish, while and Mumbai Indians can still be dethroned from there.
Highlights
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Kolkata face Mumbai on Saturday
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Mumbai are the only team to have qualified for play-offs
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If Kolkata beat Mumbai they will also qualify
If Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) find themselves with just one attempt to make it to the Indian Premier League (IPL) Season 10 Play-offs, it would be something they can't blame anyone else for. Beginning in whirlwind fashion, KKR suddenly find themselves having to beat a formidable Mumbai Indians (MI), who are at the moment at the top of the table, to keep alive their hopes for a slot that will give them two chances to make it to the final.
KKR has had a rather poor last few matches, having lost three of their last four matches.
MI too have lost two consecutive games and suddenly find themselves in a place a top-two finish is still not guaranteed.
Kolkata need to win to take their tally to 18, same as their opponents and remain in contention for a second-place finish, as it will give them the privilege of getting two shots at making the final.
At the same time, both sides will keep an eye on Rising Pune Supergiant, who have two matches to go and could well end up with 20 points.
To make matter worse, KKR have lost four matches in a row against Mumbai in a lopsided 5-14 overall record. Their winning percentage of 26.31 against Mumbai is also the least among teams with a minimum of five matches.
Kolkata however have the best net run-rate (+0.729) among the still-to-be-qualified teams.
Squads:
Kolkata Knight Riders: Gautam Gambhir (capt), Darren Bravo, Trent Boult, Piyush Chawla, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Colin de Grandhomme, Rishi Dhawan, Sayan Ghosh, Shakib Al-Hasan, Sheldon Jackson, Ishank Jaggi, Kuldeep Yadav, Chris Woakes, Chris Lynn, Sunil Narine, Manish Pandey, Yusuf Pathan, Ankit Rajpoot, Suryakumar Yadav, Robin Uthappa, Umesh Yadav.
Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (capt), Lendl Simmons, Mitchell Johnson, Mitchell McClenghan, Nitish Rana, Parthiv Patel, Saurabh Tiwary, Shreyas Gopal, Tim Southee, Lasith Malinga, Krunal Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Ambati Rayudu, Asela Gunaratne, Harbhajan Singh, Hardik Pandya, Jagdish Suchith, Jasprit Bumrah, Jos Buttler, Karn Sharma, Vinay Kumar.
(With PTI Inputs)