Match details

Kolkata Knight Riders (2nd; W4, L2) vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru (10th; W1, L6)
Kolkata, 1530 IST (1000 GMT)

Big picture - Narine vs RCB

Narine has been just as exceptional with the bat. Back as opener, and despite the two-bouncer rule, he has scored 276 runs at a strike rate of 187.75. Previously, fast bowlers would get him out with the short ball. This time, too, he has not looked in control against the short ball at all times, but has managed to survive and has made oppositions pay. RCB have already got a taste of that in their previous meeting with KKR.

Form guide

Kolkata Knight Riders LWLWW (last five matches, most recent first)
Royal Challengers Bengaluru LLLLL

Previous meeting

Team news and impact player strategy

Probable XII: 1 Phil Salt (wk), 2 Sunil Narine, 3 Angkrish Raghuvanshi, 4 Shreyas Iyer (capt), 5 Venkatesh Iyer, 6 Andre Russell, 7 Rinku Singh, 8 Ramandeep Singh, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Varun Chakravarthy, 11 Harshit Rana, 12 Suyash Sharma/Vaibhav Arora

Probable XII: 1 Virat Kohli, 2 Faf du Plessis (capt), 3 Will Jacks, 4 Rajat Patidar, 5 Saurav Chauhan, 6 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 7 Mahipal Lomror, 8 Anuj Rawat, 9 Vijaykumar Vyshak, 10 Reece Topley, 11 Lockie Ferguson, 12 Mayank Dagar/Yash Dayal

In the spotlight - Mitchell Starc and Faf du Plessis

Meanwhile, Dinesh Karthik is having a dream season. He has consistently provided RCB with strong finishes and is their third-highest run-scorer with a tally of 226 in six innings. Among those who have scored at least 200 runs this season, his strike rate of 205.45 is the highest. In fact, in four of his six innings, he has struck at more than 230. If he continues in the same manner, he could even find himself in India's T20 World Cup squad, which he said will be "the greatest feeling" for him at this stage of his career.

Pitch and conditions

So far this season, Eden Gardens has hosted three games. In two of those, 200 was breached in all four innings. In the third, KKR chased down 162 against Lucknow Super Giants in the 16th over. But it needs to be seen whether it will be another run fest or KKR will dish out a slightly different surface. Given it's an afternoon game, there will be a temptation to bat first on winning the toss.

Stats that matter

Quotes

"It's not the most talented team that goes on to win the IPL. It's the most courageous team, that's willing to fight till the last drop of blood, will go on to win the IPL.
Gautam Gambhir on what makes an IPL-winning team

"The belief is definitely there. If you don't have belief, there is no point playing a tournament like the IPL. Every year there will be a couple of teams at this stage trying to find their feet and there have been so many instances when they have picked up and won the matches. We believe that if we can do something special and win a few matches, we could get that momentum - that interesting word that always happens in the IPL - and use that to our confidence."
Dinesh Karthik on RCB's playoff chances