IPL 2018: Playoffs, Match 58, Qualifier 2 - Kolkata Knight Riders vs Sunrisers Hyderabad: Match Prediction

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will be very confident ahead of the Qualifier second against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at their home ground Eden Gardens on Friday (May 25).

It will definitely be a high voltage match. However, Hyderabad will be pretty disappointed with the fact that they allowed Chennai Super Kings (CSK), to seal an improbable victory from the jaws of defeat.

Chennai struggled while chasing a relatively mediocre target in their allotted 20 overs.

However, the Hyderabad bowlers spun a web around the CSK batsmen and reduced them to 62 for six. None of the top order batsmen were able to cope with the brilliant bowling of Hyderabad.

Siddharth Kaul produced a sensational couple of deliveries as he castled Suresh Raina and Ambati Rayudu in consecutive deliveries. Rashid Khan also bowled quite brilliantly. However, it was a gem of a knock from Faf du Plessis which helped CSK claw their way back into the match.

In the end, du Plessis sealed the deal for Chennai with a straight six off Bhuvneshwar Kumar on the very first delivery of the final over. They were in complete control of proceedings.

Hence, the defeat will definitely not allow them to stay in the right shape. But SRH being a champion team in their own rights might stage a sensational comeback and make the final scheduled to be played on Sunday (May 27).

Kane Williamson needs to come well along with Shikhar Dhawan if Hyderabad wants to stall their losing run. It is a virtual eliminator as the team losing will head back home.

Kolkata will be pretty satisfied with their victory against the Rajasthan Royals (RR). They were under pressure both while batting and bowling. They were reduced to 51 for four before captain Dinesh Karthik and Shubhman Gill shared an impressive partnership of 55 runs.

Eventually, KKR finished off quite brilliantly as Andre Russell remained unbeaten on 49 of just 25 deliveries.

They were in trouble with the ball too. Rajasthan raced off to 87 in their first 10 overs and needed just 83 in their back 10. Sanju Samson and Ajinkya Rahane were going great guns.

However, they were unable to find boundaries on a consistent basis. It kept the pressure on.

Eventually, it resulted in the wicket of Ajinkya Rahane off the bowling of Kuldeep Yadav. Samson also fell in quick succession and from there on, it was always going to be pretty difficult for Kolkata.

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Team Combinations –

Kolkata Knight Riders:

I haven’t found any proper reason that why Javon Searles has been included in the playing XI for the last four matches. He has hardly had anything to do all through.

Interestingly, Searles has just bowled three overs and scored six runs. In a knockout clash against a quality side like Hyderabad, I will definitely want to see Mitchell Johnson making a return. The left-arm pacer used to instill fear among the batsmen during his heydays and this evening might be one such day.

Even if it is not Johnson, Curran should be given a chance in the playing XI. Though he has been expensive, they are way better any day than Searles.

Predicted XI: Sunil Narine, Chris Lynn, Robin Uthappa, Nitish Rana, Dinesh Karthik, Shubman Gill, Andre Russell, Mitchell Johnson, Piyush Chawla, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna.

Sunrisers Hyderabad:

Carlos Brathwaite bolstered Hyderabad towards the end of the innings. It propelled them to 139 against Chennai. Despite his expensive over towards the death, he will definitely keep his place. Hence Alex Hales will remain in the wilderness.

Predicted XI: Shikhar Dhawan, Shreevats Goswami, Kane Williamson, Manish Pandey, Yusuf Pathan, Shakib Al Hasan, Carlos Brathwaite, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Sandeep Sharma, Siddarth Kaul

Match Prediction:

Hyderabad has a more balanced team on paper than Kolkata. However, their defeat in Qualifier 1st and KKR’s victory in the eliminator will keep the latter team in good shape.

Kolkata Knight Riders have had a more positive mindset and in such a crunch situation of the tournament, I back them to qualify through to another final.

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