KKR vs RCB preview: Can Kolkata Knight Riders return to winning ways at Eden Gardens against Bangalore?

KKR have signed English swashbuckling opener Jason Roy as a replacement for Bangladeshi all-rounder Shakib al Hasan and that will significantly strengthen their top-order that seemed to be knack enough mettle and quality in the opening game at least.

Punjab batsman Mandeep Singh and Afghan wicketkeeper-batsman Rahmanullah Gurbaz occupied the first two spots against PBKS and neither of them did enough to chase down the challenging total set in front of them. It is unlikely that Roy will walk straight into the XI for this game and hence the duo of Mandeep and Gurbaz get one another opportunity before either of places is taken over by the English opener in the coming matches.

RCB, on the other hand, might have to deal with the absence of Reece Topley who dislocated his shoulder in the previous match. Ian Bishop revealed on air that the pacer’s shoulder was put back in place but he didn’t participate post that incident in the game.

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KKR: Mandeep Singh, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Nitish Rana (c), Rinku Singh, Venkatesh Iyer, Andre Russell, Shardul Thakur, Sunil Narine, Umesh Yadav, Tim Southee, Varun Chakravarthy.

Impact Player: Anukul Roy

RCB: Virat Kohli, Faf du Plessis (c), Glenn Maxwell, Michael Bracewell, Shahbaz Ahmed, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Karn Sharma, Harshal Patel, Akash Deep, David Willey, Mohammed Siraj.

Impact Player: Mahipal Lomror

Matches played: 30

KKR wins: 16

RCB wins: 14

The southpaw has been one of the most consistent players for KKR over the years but he has to assume greater responsibility in Iyer’s absence this season. Rana’s form tends to fade away as the season progresses usually but he can ill-afford to do that amidst an already weakened batting unit this time around. He will be hoping to delight the home crowd with his power-hitting skills against RCB.

Kohli reiterated his class as he mastered the chase with an unbeaten 82 in the last game. He will relish the bounce on offer at the freshly laid Eden track considering the kind of form that he is in. KKR do not have any bowlers who can outright trouble Kohli from the offset. If he manages to get in the groove, the audience could be in for yet another special knock from the former India skipper.

The average first innings batting score in 12 T20Is in Eden Gardens is 155 and that suggests that a fair battle between the bat and the ball is on the cards for Thursday’s game.

The match will start at 7:30 PM IST on Thursday and it will be telecast live on the Star Sports network. Online viewers can also tune into the action via the Jio Cinema app.