The 22nd fixture of the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League will witness an iconic clash between Shreyas Iyer’s Kolkata Knight Riders and Ruturaj Gaikwad-led Chennai Super Kings at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Monday from 7:30 pm onwards.
The Knight Riders have been absolutely sensational in the tournament, as they are yet to lose a game while Chennai Super Kings are in trouble after losing their last two matches and need to find their way to victory again on Monday.
What has happened so far?
Under the leadership of new captain Ruturaj Gaikwad, Chennai Super Kings had a dream start to the tournament as they defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore and Gujarat Titans by six wickets and 63 runs, respectively. However, the team could not continue the momentum and faced a defeat against Delhi Capitals by 20 runs.
The CSK bowlers were not up to the mark against the Capitals as they conceded 191 runs in the allotted 20 overs. Batting in the second innings, the Super Kings failed to chase the score despite a quick cameo of 37 runs off 16 balls by MS Dhoni. The team’s miseries did not end there as they lost their next match to Sunrisers Hyderabad by 6 wickets.
Speaking of Kolkata Knight Riders, they are at the top of the table with three wins from as many games. The team defeated the likes of Sunrisers Hyderabad, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Delhi Capitals by four runs, seven runs, and 106 runs respectively.
The Knight Riders have reunited with former skipper Gautam Gambhir who has returned to the franchise in the role of mentor which has worked wonders for them. Sunil Narine’s return to the top of the order along with the rise of Angkrish Raghuvanshi has boded well for KKR.
Head to Head Record
Chennai Super Kings are ahead of the Kolkata Knight Riders in the head-to-head records. The two teams have featured in a total of 29 games so far with CSK winning 18 matches and KKR scoring a victory in only 10 games. One fixture between the two sides ended without any result.
Key Players
Shivam Dube is in rich form and would be looking ahead to the challenge posed by KKR
Shivam Dube (Chennai Super Kings): Shivam Dube is continuing his brilliant performance from last season as he stands as the top run-scorer for the Super Kings in the 2024 edition of the cash-rich league. Dube has batted in all four games for the franchise so far and has collected 148 runs at an average of 49.33.
The middle-order star will enter the Monday match in high spirits as Dube dished out an excellent performance despite CSK’s loss in their most recent encounter. Playing against Sunrisers Hyderabad, Shivam smacked 45 runs off just 24 balls with the help of two boundaries and four maximums.
Sunil Narine (Kolkata Knight Riders): Sunil Narine has emerged as an X-factor for the Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2024. The spin all-rounder has been promoted to the top of the batting order this season and he has done wonders both while opening the innings for the team alongside Phil Salt.
As the Knight Riders recorded a smashing victory by 106 runs against Delhi Capitals, Narine pitched in with a score of 85 runs off just 39 balls. Notably, he is the highest run-scorer for the side with 134 runs to his name in three games at an average of over 44 and a strike rate of over 206.
Team News from Both Camps
Chennai Super Kings might miss two overseas bowlers, Mustafizur Rahman and Matheesha Pathirana for the encounter against the Kolkata Knight Riders. Rahman is currently in Bangladesh, sorting out the issue regarding his visa for the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup while Pathirana also gave Chennai’s last game a miss following a niggle.
Kolkata Knight Riders might also not have all their bowlers available for selection in the game against the Super Kings. KKR’s match against Delhi Capitals saw Harshit Rana going out of the field because of a shoulder injury and Vaibhav Aroroa might fill in for him.
Predicted XIs
Chennai Super Kings: Ruturaj Gaikwad ©, Rachin Ravindra, Ajinkya Rahane, Shivam Dube, Daryl Mitchell, Ravindra Jadeja, Moeen Ali, MS Dhoni (wk), Deepak Chahar, Tushar Deshpande, Maheesh Theekshana
Kolkata Knight Riders: Philip Salt (wk), Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer ©, Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Mitchell Starc, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakaravarthy
Prediction
Shreyas Iyer’s men will enter the Monday game as favorites as they have scored a win in all three IPL 2024 matches so far. The team has excelled in all three facets of the game, be it batting, bowling, or fielding, and thus is yet to taste defeat in the tournament.
However, the case is not the same for CSK as they are coming into the encounter with the pressure of two consecutive losses.