IPL T20 Cricket

Kolkata Knight Riders will try to end their poor run by winning against demoralised Bangalore Royal Challengers at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akthar will not play in this match. Bangalore team lost morale after Mallya’s shock treatment to their CEO Charu Sharma. Their big hope Misbah-Ul-Haq failed to reach even double digits in the last 2 matches.

Kolkata decimated Bangalore IPL in the first match of IPL T20 tournament thanks to McCullum heroics. Kolkata failed to win a single match after this win. They are playing this match after losing four successive matches. Except David Hussey, no other batsmen played well in the recent matches. How can they play well against strong Bangalore bowling attack? Kolkata bowlers failed to perform well after their superb showing in the initial matches.

Bangalore will play this match without their in-form opener Wasim Jaffer. Strong Bangalore bowling attack may disrupt weak Kolkata batting lineup. But to win this game, their batsmen need to play according to the requirement of Twenty2o matches.

Interesting battles:

1. Zaheer Khan Vs Sourav Ganguly: Ganguly became a big bunny for Zaheer Khan in the recent matches. Will he reverse the trend?
2. Misbah-Ul-Haq Vs Umar Gul:

Watch out for: Shahrukh Khan’s 20-minute performance off the pitch. Famous wrestler Kali will also appear along with Kareena-Saif.

Key cricketers:

Bangalore IPL:

1. Virat Kohli:
2. Mark Boucher:
3. Misbah-Ul-Haq:
4. Dale Steyn & Zaheer Khan:

Kolkata IPL:

1. David Hussey: Lone warrior who played heroic innings in the last match.
2. Shukla: Very good all-rounder.
3. Ishant Sharma:

Verdict: Bangalore bowlers may give their team crucial victory in this match. Kolkata batsmen may find it difficult to face Dale Steyn, Zaheer Khan and Praveen Kumar. Anil Kumble registered his best bowling figures (one day cricket) at Eden Gardens. Kolkata captain Sourav Ganguly needs to lead his team from front but he rarely played well against quality bowling. How long David Hussey wage lone battle? Bangalore needs to tackle 90,000 strong Kolkata fans who are still supporting their home team despite its losing streak.