MI have history, KKR momentum
QUALIFIER 2 Rohit’s hurting side have superior record, but Gambhir’s team have regained confidence
BANGALORE: Kolkata Knight Riders came back to winning ways in style on Wednesday as they beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by seven wickets in a rain-curtailed match.
But now they face a stern test as they lock horns with Mumbai Indians in Qualifier 2 on Friday for a final spot.
Mumbai Indians come into the clash having lost Qualifier 1 to Rising Pune Supergiant but will take heart from the fact that they have a 15-5 record against their opposition in IPL.
Even this season, they had won both the group stage matches against Kolkata Knight Riders; the last with a second string side at the Eden Gardens.
Kolkata Knight Riders, however, will hold a bit of an advantage as they go into the crunch game on Friday with their confidence boosted after their victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad. It has also given them an indication of how the M Chinnaswamy Stadium pitch could behave.
While the loss against Rising Pune Supergiant was a one-off poor performance by Mumbai Indians, Kolkata Knight Riders can use the situation to their benefit if they stick to a certain plan and play keeping the conditions in mind.
However, KKR need to bring some stability in their batting.
They let go of a top-two spot when they threw away their wickets while chasing a modest total against Mumbai Indians in their last group game.
They seemed to have hardly learnt anything as they repeated the act against Sunrisers Hyderabad during their Eliminator clash.
They have a solid bowling unit that has been delivering for quite some time now but against Mumbai Indians the batsmen need to bring on their best. Wednesday’s win hardly tested KKR’s batting depth.
Umesh Yadav, Trent Boult and Nathan Coulter-Nile were very impressive on Wednesday and are expected to deliver yet another brilliant performance in the knockout tie.
CAUTIOUS APPROACH
On the other hand, Mumbai Indians will have to approach the game in an extremely cautious manner. They can’t take KKR lightly despite their terrific record against them.
They might be tempted to make changes following the loss to Rising Pune Supergiant but it may not be a good idea.
Another area where Kolkata Knight Riders have been shoddy of late is their inability to finish off games. Even while chasing a paltry target of 48 against Sunrisers Hyderabad, they were three wickets down for just 12 runs at one stage.
With the likes of Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah and Lasith Malinga in the side — all quality death over bowlers — Mumbai Indians can cash in if the KKR middle or lower order fails to score quick runs. It should be a riveting encounter between the two sides, both of whom are twotime champions.
Although Mumbai Indians won both their games against the Knights this season, the results could have easily gone the other way.
In the first match, it was the individual brilliance of Nitish Rana that made the difference and in the second, KKR threw their wickets away.
We don’t have a good record against Mumbai, but hopefully we can settle that tomorrow. GAUTAM GAMBHIR, KKR captain