Kolkata Knight Riders will look to continue their fine form over Delhi Daredevils as they face the team from the Capital for the second time in VIVO IPL 2018. KKR have managed to pick 6 points from their first 6 games and a win will give them the required momentum heading further into the tournament.
Advantage Kolkata Knight Riders
After a thumping win over Delhi Daredevils when the two sides met at Eden Gardens, Kolkata Knight Riders certainly has an upper-hand over the home team. Our Knights last played on April 21, when they lost to KXIP. A 5-day rest makes them even more dangerous side as they will look to register another away win, and strengthen their chance for a spot in the playoffs.
Kolkata Knight Riders' batsmen have been among runs in this IPL. Going by the numbers, five of our batsmen have scored over 150 runs in this season of IPL, most by any other team. Our bowlers had one bad day against Kings XI Punjab and it proved costly. The Spin-trio has been a force for our Knights. Despite a heavy loss in our last match, Shivam Mavi was good with his pace and troubled KXIP's openers in his short bowling spells.
Below-par performance from Delhi Daredevils
Delhi, on the other hand, lie at the bottom of the table with 2 points. They have played some close matches but the results haven’t gone in their favour. DD started their IPL 2018 campaign with 5 away games on the trot before playing in front of their home crowd against KXIP, where they lost a close game.
DD made 5 changes in their previous encounter and there are chances that the team could stick with the same playing XI. The likes of Liam Plunkett, Avesh Khan & Prithvi Shaw impressed on their debuts.
In another shocking news, Gautam Gambhir has stepped down as DD's skipper. Young Shreyas Iyer will lead DD for the remaining season. While addressing media in Delhi on Wednesday (April 25) Gautam Gambhir took a tough call.
"I take full responsibility for the position we are in. And looking at the position, I have decided to step down as captain. Iyer will take over. I still feel we have the team to turn things around this IPL."
History
Kolkata Knight Riders have an edge over the home team in the head-to-head battle (W-L: 13-7). But record can just be an illusion. DD is also known to play their heart out in front of their home crowd. Last year, a nail-biting match at Feroz Shah Kotla ended in our favour as we won the match on the penultimate ball of the 20th over.
Head to head
Overall: Matches - 20
Won by Kolkata Knight Riders - 13
Won by Delhi Daredevils - 7
Last 5 games
Won by KKR - 4
Won by DD - 1
Delhi Daredevils were below par when they played KKR at Eden Gardens earlier in the VIVO IPL 2018. Our Knights outperformed the visitors with both bat and ball as they beat DD by 71 runs.
Match Details
27 April 2018, 20:00 Hrs (IST), Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi