Indian Premier League 2023 will be remembered as the first season when Kolkata Knight Riders thrived on the sight of Nitish Rana and Rinku Singh finishing matches for them. Having said that, the first such instance had been witnessed during a KKR vs Rajasthan Royals contest at the Wankhede Stadium last year.
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Slated to participate in IPL 2023 Match 56 at the Eden Gardens tomorrow, these two teams will be locking horns for the first time since that match where a match-winning 68-run fourth-wicket partnership between Rana and Singh had powered Knight Riders to a seven-wicket victory with five balls remaining in the match.
Historically, Kolkata have had the better of Rajasthan, albeit by a small margin. Unlike the last season, these two teams will be facing each other just once this year. Hence, they have only a lone opportunity of making a mark in this rivalry.
Speaking of Kolkata, it is not surprising that the home team has a 6-2 lead over this opposition in the biggest T20 league around the world. Scheduled to play at this stadium after a four-year period, readers must note that RR had won their last contest against KKR here.
A match fondly remembered for former captain Dinesh Karthik‘s career-best knock, it had resulting in Royals chasing down a 178-run target in the last over.
KOL vs RR Head to Head Record in IPL History
Total number of matches played: 27
Matches won by KOL: 14
Matches won by RR: 12
Matches played in May: 8 (KOL 5, RR 3)
Matches played on Thursday: 5 (KOL 4, RR 1)
Matches played at Eden Gardens: 9 (KOL 6, RR 2)
KOL average score against RR: 151
RR average score against KOL: 148
Most runs for KOL: 202 (Nitish Rana)
Most runs for RR: 340 (Sanju Samson)
Most wickets for KOL: 12 (Sunil Narine)
Most wickets for RR: 5 (Yuzvendra Chahal)
Most catches for KOL: 3 (Rinku Singh)
Most catches for RR: 8 (Sanju Samson)
NOTE: Only players part of current squads have been considered above (most runs, wickets and catches).