Two points and consolidating 4th spot will be on Kolkata Knight Riders mind when they take on Royal Challengers Bengaluru at Sheikh Zayed Stadium Abu Dhabi. Both teams would like to outdo each other as. KKR win will give them breathing space at 4th slot and RCB would want to win to give themselves every chance for a top 2 finish. KKR has made a habit of not giving up and have won matches from losing positions.
Raise your hand if you remember the masterclass Yuzi put up in Sharjah when we met KKR. 🙋🏻♂️ 🙋🏻♀️
1️⃣/1️⃣2️⃣(4) with an economy of 3️⃣!! 🤯@yuzi_chahal#PlayBold #IPL2020 #WeAreChallengers #Dream11IPL #KKRvRCB pic.twitter.com/hxbY9qRjkV
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) October 21, 2020
They have been bolstered by the presence of Lockie Ferguson who was pact and accurate in the last match against SRH. KKR would again look for a strong performance from him to unsettle top-heavy RCB team. It’s strange that it took 9 matches for him to get into the team but now he has a got a chance he would like to perform in every match to become a non-removable asset.
KKR would like their batsman to score some more runs in coming matches which gives their bowling a cushion as well. Their fielding has been very safe till now and have dropped fewer catches. RCB have been a surprising package of this tournament and have managed to win 6 from 9 matches. They require 3 wins from 5 matches and looking at the way they have played looks likely that they will reach playoffs.
Their batting has been good if not great and Devillers has been phenomenal. Finch, Padikkal and Virat have also been among runs although Finch is yet to play marquee innings . Kohli also has not been up to the mark with his strokeplay but has managed to score runs by running singles and doubles. After top four the lower middle order and tail are yet to be tested and in a neck, to neck game things might go against them. They would also like to see Dube back which gives them a cushion of 2-3 overs as well and he can tonk big hits as well.
Their bowling has been at par, if not above par, with Morris, had been the catalyst they required to support all other bowlers. His performance against Royals went under the radar but was exceptional with 4/23. RCB would like to play a complete game as they did in first phase match against KKR. Abu Dhabi have bigger grounds and spinners should have an impact and game might be decided on who bowls well. RCB start favourites but should be aware of Ferguson
