KKR are on a merry run this season with 3 wins out of 4 games and are sitting pretty at the second spot of the points table. One more win today may push them to the table top but they are up against Delhi Daredevils, a mighty impressive unit under Rahul Dravid. Both the teams won their last two games and are looking high on confidence. So we could expect an exciting battle today between two good quality sides on a rather tricky Feroz Shah Kotla Pitch.

KKR start as favorites as they look a solid team on paper when compared to DD. It’s a home ground for Gambhir too so he knows this pitch better than anyone else.But Zaheer and his boys have got their tail up with a couple of wins on their back. Will they be good enough to stop the mighty KKR? Will have to wait and see folks.

DD vs KKR Head to Head – 

Overall:

Matches played – 17

DD Won – 7

KKR Won – 10

At the Feroz Shah Kotla:

Matches played – 6

DD Won – 2

KKR Won – 4

KKR journey so far-

Played – 4

Won- 3

Lost -1

KKR has always been a strong side right from the first season. Gautham Gambhir is leading the team pretty well from the front with his consistent batting performances. The team boasts a strong batting and bowling lineups, although their star batsman Chris Lynn had to sit out due to a shoulder injury. This team seems to be a really well-balanced side and they did perform that way too so far. This nucleus of this KKR side has almost remained the same over the years. They keep their business simple, one of the two Gambhir or Uthappa bats through the innings and the other batsman rotate around them. They have a strong spin bowling department which is backed by real good international quicks like Boult and Woakes. This is a team to beat man!!!

Batting– When we felt Chris Lynn’s absence will hurt the opening stand, there came Sunil Narine out of nowhere and did a Lynn with a 37 off 17 blistering knock. Gautam Gambhir has been at his usual best registering 2 half centuries in 4 outings. Uthappa has found some form with a blistering 39 ball 68 against SRH. The top order is aptly supported by the firepower of Pandey and Yusuf Pathan in the end.  Pandey has been really solid in the middle order and this is a very strong batting side.
Bowling–  When you got the likes of Boult, Umesh, Woakes and Grandhomme in the fast bowling department and the likes of Narine, Chawla, and Kuldeep sharing the spin department you know that you got multiple reliable options up your sleeve. This versatility in the bowling has done a world of good to KKR as they were able to control the game in the middle and death overs as well. This is a good attack backed by some aggressive captaincy.
Probable XI: Gautam Gambhir(C), Robin Uthappa(WK), Manish Pandey, SuryaKumar Yadav, Yusuf Pathan, Shakib Al Hasan, Chris Woakes, Sunil Narine, Kuldeep Yadav, Umesh Yadav, Trent Boult

DD journey so far-

Played – 3

Won- 2

Lost -1

Delhi, after they failed to chase down a modest 158 against RCB, came back very strongly in their next two outings. When Sanju Samson registered his maiden IPL century, DD registered its highest victory in terms of runs against RPS. When their overseas batters led from the front they made 188 on a slow and wearing Delhi pitch and tumbled Punjab for 137. This is a side with the least experienced batting unit. Yes, it’s a young batting side but extremely powerful with all of them finding form in the 3 matches. Each match had a different batting hero for DD and that will surely please Dravid in the dressing room.
Batting– When it was a valiant Rishab Pant who refused to give up on a losing cause against RCB in their 1st game, it was Sanju Samson smoking a 100 and Chris Morris making a mockery of RPS bowling in their 2nd. That is not the end, their international picks Sam Billings and Corey Anderson showed their prowess with valuable knocks in their 3rd outing against Punjab. Only Karun Nair and Shreyas Iyer are left to score big now. That’s how good their batting has been.
Bowling– Led by the wily Zaheer khan, DD has been a disciplined bowling unit that has not conceded more than 160 in all 3 matches so far. That’s a stat to be proud of. Amit Mishra and Shadab Nadeem have been very clinical with their spin bowling. Morris and Pat Cummins have been absolutely professional by picking up wickets at the right moments for DD. But the talking point has to be Zaheer Khan who seemed impressive with the new ball. All in all a solid bowling unit this that can defend modest totals quite well.
Probable XI: Sam Billings, Sanju Samson, Karun Nair, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant(WK), Chris Morris, Corey Anderson, Pat Cummins, Zaheer Khan (C), Shahbaz Nadeem, Amit Mishra.

AllIndiaRoundup Predicts:

Well, every cricket loving Indian is a cricket expert and every expert has his own predictions for IPL. Right from cricket pundits sitting in com boxes to the waiters at a local Mumbai cafe, everyone is an expert in India. We @AIR thought why not try out our luck by predicting these matches. Of course, we would appreciate your support in making these calls. You can vote and tell us who is that you think will win today’s match.

DD vs KKR Match Predictions-

It’s a slow pitch this the Feroz Shah Kotla and it slows down as the game progresses. It will be an important toss to win.

OUR WINNER – Kolkata Knight Riders

 WHY?

• Strong and experienced batting for KKR on slow conditions as well.
• Strong spin combination for KKR compared to DD.
• KKR is a vastly experienced unit compared to DD.
• Variety in both bowling and batting departments for KKR.

DD vs KKR Score prediction –

First batting:

DD –155-165

KKR – 165-175

Our Star performers Today-

Gambhir, Uthappa, Narine, Kuldeep

Sam Billings, Karun Nair, Morris, Mishra