Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) eye a hat-trick of wins as they take on SunRisers Hyderabad in an Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 match at the Eden Gardens. After suffering a defeat in their first game of the season, KKR found two unlikely heroes in two matches to get their campaign up and running. First, it was Shardul Thakur's storm with the bat that took a star-studded Royal Challengers Bangalore by surprise as the pace bowling allrounder's 29-ball 68 led KKR to their first win of the season, a dominant 81-run victory. Then the low-profile Rinku has become the flavour of the season after pulling off the greatest heist in T20 history by scoring 31 runs in the last over to win a match.
Here's what we think could be KKR's playing XI vs SRH:
KKR have tried out different opening combinations in the three matches so far and it is likely to be changed again against SRH. England opener Jason Roy and Bangladesh batter Litton Das could be shipped straight into the playing XI.
They are likely to replace Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Andre Russell. Gurbaz has looked promising so far, but could be sacrificed to make way for the experienced. Russell, on the other hand, had a difficult time last season, and is yet to hit the ground running so far.
Meanwhile, Narayan Jagadeesan may don the wicketkeeping gloves. In the middle-order, Venkatesh Iyer and Nitish Rana will be joined by the explosive Rinku Singh. A win for KKR, currently placed third, may take them to the top of the table.
Sunil Narine and Shardul Thakur will add more depth to KKR's batting while Umesh Yadav and Lockie Ferguson will spearhead the pace attack. Varun Chakravarthy will be the lone specialist spinner for the two-time champions.
KKR Predicted XI vs SRH: Jason Roy, Litton Das, N Jagadeesan, Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana, Rinku Singh, Sunil Narine, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, Lockie Ferguson, Varun Chakravarthy
(With PTI Inputs)