One more defeat and the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are as good as out of contention for the IPL playoffs this season, which makes every one of their remaining five games a virtual knockout match. Starting this onerous run against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will not be easy for the Knights, given how SRH are coming off a morale-boosting win in a cliffhanger against the Delhi Capitals (DC).
In the reverse fixture this season, KKR put in a valiant display to push SRH close, but eventually lost out in their pursuit of a mammoth score of 228 at the Eden Gardens. Nitish Rana and Shardul Thakur played explosive knocks on the night, but the headlines were reserved for SRH’s Harry Brook, whose unbeaten century was the first one of this season’s competition.
Before KKR and SRH go at it again in IPL 2023, My Kolkata identifies the key battles that will separate the winners from the losers
Jason Roy versus Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Bhuvneshwar Kumar will be tasked with keeping the KKR openers quiet, especially the in-form Jason Roy TT Archives
After missing out against the Gujarat Titans (GT) due to injury, Roy will be eager to resume his fantastic form for KKR against SRH. Up against him with the new ball should be Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who has dismissed the Englishman once before in IPL cricket while giving away 15 runs in 13 balls. Conditions in Hyderabad should suit Bhuvneshwar early on, meaning that Roy will have to be careful in negotiating Bhuvi’s first over or two, before he can launch into his big hitting against the rest of the attack.
Varun Chakravarthy versus Aiden Markram
Varun Chakravarthy dismissed Aiden Markram the last time the two faced off TT Archives
Chakravarthy came out on top in their last face-off when he sent Markram packing for a well-made 50 off just 26 balls. This time around, both men will once again be vital to their teams’ fortunes during the middle overs, with the slightly longer square boundaries in Hyderabad giving Chakravarthy better protection than in Kolkata. At the same time, the pitch at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium is unlikely to have a lot of demons for Chakravarthy to exploit, allowing Markram smooth passage if and when he gets his eye in.
Nitish Rana versus Mayank Markande
Rana will need to play against the spin when sweeping or pulling against Mayank Markande TT Archives
With 10 wickets to his name so far this term, Markande has been SRH’s most successful bowler in IPL 2023. The 25-year-old leg spinner has shown admirable courage and composure under pressure to chip away at the wickets column for SRH, something he also did at Eden in mid-April, with two scalps. Rana, for his part, has blown hot and cold this year, but has to come up trumps if KKR need to maximise their chances against the Orange Army. Markande’s stock delivery to the left-hander means that playing across the line becomes a big risk for the KKR skipper, who will have to be cautious attacking against the spin during this contest.