KKR Playing 11 today: The Sportsrush presents before you KKR’s Predicted Playing 11 for their ninth match of IPL 2019.
The Kolkata Knight Riders, after a swashbuckling start, must be wondering where they went wrong. Was it the toss? Was it the over-dependency on Russell? Was it the lack of replacements in case of an injury? It was probably a combination of all these factors. However, they need to now focus on the controllables and look to make the best use of available resources.
They need to back themselves to be as good as they were earlier. Dinesh Karthik has to motivate his boys to play hard and believe in themselves. They have the firepower to comeback if they play some good cricket. The head to head record against RCB should give them some confidence to go out and win this one.
KKR Top Order Playing 11
Chris Lynn has been in supremely good touch and the 82 he scored against CSK should be a confidence booster for him. He needs to bat like Chris Lynn does and the rest will fall in place. His opening partner, Sunil Narine, has not looked very good at the top except the match against the Rajasthan Royals where he went all guns blazing. He needs to be the pinch-hitter and make use of the opportunity at the top.
Nitish Rana might be replaced by Robin Uthappa at No. 3 considering he can consolidate the innings and play the role of an anchor as well.
What’s common 🤔
Hint: 🏠#KKRvRCB #KKRHaiTaiyaar #VIVOIPL pic.twitter.com/hTk7j2fjOh
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) April 18, 2019
KKR Middle Order Playing 11
Nitish Rana needs to find the form he was showcasing in the initial stages of the tournament. He is a stylish batsman and needs to back himself and play a skilful innings. Dinesh Karthik, bolstered by his World Cup selection, would want to show how he deserves to be there. He needs to lead KKR from the front and play his role well.
Andre Russell will try to do what he does. Wake up, eat, play some unbelievable shots and go to sleep. Shubman Gill will complete the middle order. He can also be promoted up the order if needed.
KKR Bowlers Playing 11
The KKR bowling attack performed well to almost defend 161 runs at the flat Eden Gardens deck. They would look to perform similarly. The spinners did well and picked up regular wickets. Piyush Chawla and Sunil Narine were particularly brilliant and would like to do a good job again.
Kuldeep Yadav needs to come to the party as he has been off-colour in this IPL. Pacers Prasidh Krishna and Harry Gurney have looked good at most times but they do need to work on the death bowling. Matt Kelly might have to wait for his debut.
PREDICTED PLAYING XI: 1) Sunil Narine 2) Chris Lynn 3) Robin Uthappa 4) Nitish Rana 5) Dinesh Karthik (C) (WK) 6) Andre Russell 7) Shubman Gill 8) Piyush Chawla 9) Kuldeep Yadav 10) Harry Gurney 11) Prasidh Krishna
