It’s the big final of the 2024 Indian Premier League at the Chepauk Stadium in Chennai on Sunday evening between Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad.
KKR will be aiming to win their first IPL trophy in 10 years while Sunriusers Hyderabad last won the title eight years ago, in 2016. KKR finished No.1 in the points table this year and made a direct entry into the finals after defeating SRH in Qualifier 1. SRH got the better of Rajasthan Royals in the second Qualifier to seal a place in the final.
What has happened so far?
The Kolkata-based franchise won nine of 12 completed games in the first round and was a part of two washouts. They ended at No.1 on the table with 20 points with a Net Run Rate of +1.428, the best by a team in the history of the IPL.
KKR have not lost a game this month, with their last defeat against Punjab Kings at Eden Gardens. They are currently on a five-match winning streak, with their most recent victory against SRH in Ahmedabad. KKR bowled out the power-packed SRH batting unit for 159 and chased down the total in just 13.4 overs with Venkatesh Iyer and Shreyas Iyer scoring quick fifties.
SRH, on the other hand, finished second on the table with 17 points, edging ahead of Rajasthan Royals due to a superior Net Run Rate. They were also a part of one abandoned match, against Gujarat Titans in Hyderabad.
After losing the first Qualifier to KKR, SRH played RR in the second Qualifier on Friday. Batting first, Hyderabad made 175-9 courtesy of a quick 15-ball innings from Rahul Tripathi scoring 37 runs and a fine half-century from Heinrich Klaasen.
Defending an under-par score, Pat Cummins’ brilliant captaincy of bowling part-timer Abhishek Sharma proved to be a masterstroke. Sharma finished with 2/24 in his four overs as the scoring rate came to a standstill in the middle overs.
Head to Head Record
The head-to-head record between these two is heavily tilted towards Kolkata Knight Riders. The two teams have met each other 27 times, with KKR winning as many as 18 matches and SRH claiming only nine games.
The recent record also favours KKR, who have won nine of the last 11 matches between the two. SRH do not have momentum against the opposition but in an IPL final, the team that handles the pressure better will be triumphant.
Key Players
Sunil Narine will be crucial for KKR with both bat and ball
Sunil Narine (Kolkata Knight Riders): The move to open with Sunil Narine has worked wonderfully for KKR, with the left-hander giving them plenty of explosive starts in the edition. Narine, who scored 418 runs between 2019 and 2023 has made 482 runs this season at a strike rate of 179.85.
He has been threatening in the powerplay, where he has been striking at 168.71. The departure of Phil Salt further increases the onus on Narine to give KKR an explosive start in the final. He has also been brilliant with the ball, picking up 16 wickets at an economy rate of 6.90.
Pat Cummins (Sunrisers Hyderabad): Pat Cummins has picked up 17 wickets in the 2024 IPL and is the second-highest wicket-taker for SRH, behind T Natarajan. Cummins is an excellent reader of the conditions and bowled hard lengths during the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup final against India, which was the game-changer.
Cummins has also been an impressive captain, winning both the World Test Championship and the ODI World Cup in the last year. Alongside his bowling, Cummins also has the skills to turn around a game with his leadership skills, making him a player to watch out for.
Team News from Both Camps
KKR have been dealt with the big blow of Phil Salt leaving the competition for international commitments. Salt and Narine were a formidable opening pair, going at 12.46 runs an over in the 12 games they played. Rahmanullah Gurbaz slotted in for Salt in the first Qualifier and would be expected to do the same on Sunday.
Predicted XIs
Kolkata Knight Riders: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer ©, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Mitchell Starc, Vaibhav Arora, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Rahul Tripathi, Nitish Reddy, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Abdul Samad, Pat Cummins ©, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jaydev Unadkat, T Natarajan
Prediction
Both teams have been in great form in the 2024 IPL and we can expect a tough fight in the summit clash. KKR have the firepower with both bat and ball but the absence of Salt could affect them in the big clash. SRH rely heavily on their opening batters and Cummins has spoken about the need for the bowling unit to be more consistent.