IPL T20 Cricket

Rejuvenated Kolkata Knight Riders will take on Delhi Daredevils at Eden Garden in an Indian Premier League match. Delhi surprisingly lost 3 consecutive matches after their wonderful run in the initial matches. Delhi is depending too much on its top order but absence of match winners in the middle order and lack of all-rounder like Daniel Vettori is costing them much. David Hussey and Shukla are revelation for Kolkata Knight Riders and they will expose Delhi’s fifth bowler. Kolkata needs to play Saha in the top order in order to capitalise on power play. Accumulators like Akash Chopra may score 20-30 runs but they can’t fully utilise first 6 overs.

Delhi needs to utilise Farveez Maharoof more astutely as he is a big hitting all-rounder. Glenn McGrath needs to quickly remove Salman Bhatt and Sourav Ganguly in the first spell. Delhi top order can easily tackle Shoaib Akthar’s pace if he plays for Kolkata.

Deciding factor: How Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan will perform against their Ranji team mate Ishant Sharma?

Match timing: From 8 PM to 11 PM.

IPL Statistics:

1. Delhi Daredevils lost 3 straight matches while Kolkata won two straight matches.
2. Sourav Ganguly won back to back man of the match awards.
3. This is the first match between two teams.
4. Both teams won 4 matches while losing 4 games.
5. Gautam Gambhir is the leading run scorer in IPL 2008.
6. David Hussey is the only Kolkata batsmen in the top 10 list.

Key cricketers:

Kolkata Knight Riders:

1. Sourav Ganguly: “Dada” is back to his best and won two man of the match awards in straight games.
2. David Hussey: Most consistent batsman in IPL along with Rohit Sharma.
3. Ishant Sharma: Maturity beyond his age.

Delhi Daredevils:

1. Glenn McGrath: Economical bowling hero.
2. Sehwag- Gambhir: Most consistent and dangerous openers in IPL.
3. Shikhar Dhawan: Consistency is his forte.

Verdict: Delhi Daredevils have slight edge despite recent losses but they have to cope with resurgent Kolkata Knight Riders and Eden Gardens atmosphere where 90,000 passionate fans support their home fans. Match result will depend on how Kolkata bowlers expose weak Delhi middle order. If Glenn McGrath quickly removes Sourav Ganguly, Kolkata will be in trouble. If Ishant Sharma can take care of Delhi top order, Kolkata is safe. Interesting contest.

Probable teams:

Kolkata Knight Riders:

Sourav Ganguly (Captain), Aakash Chopra, Salman Butt, David Hussey, L. Shukla, Saha, Tatenda Taibu, Umar Gul, Ishant Sharma, Ashok Dinda and Murali Karthik.

Delhi Daredevils:

Virender Sehwag (Captain), Gautam Gambhir, Shikhar Dhawan, De Villiers, Rajat Bhatia, Maharoof, Dinesh Karthik, Yo Mahesh, Pradeep Sangwan, Mohammad Asif and Glenn McGrath.