IPL 2023: Match 36, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) Predicted Playing XI vs Royal Challengers Bangalore

Nothing is working for Kolkata Knight Riders in the ongoing IPL 2023. Despite so, the Nitish Rana-led side will be fairly confident ahead of their upcoming match against Royal Challengers Bangalore, as RCB remain one of the two sides that KKR have beaten in the ongoing season.

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Also, given the history, RCB have a poor record against the two-time champions but even so, no one can count them out, given their form at the moment.

Last time, Shardul Thakur wreaked havoc and by virtue of his powerful shots, KKR managed to get the job done. However, the all-rounder has not been a part of the playing XI for the last two games and, KKR’s bowlers have leaked runs at a rapid rate. So, will they make any changes to strengthen their squad against RCB? Let’s dissect:

Here's Kolkata Knight Riders predicted XI against Royal Challengers Bangalore:

Openers: Jason Roy, N Jagadeesan (wk)

Jason Roy was in terrific form in the match against Chennai Super Kings. At Chinnaswamy, where the batters usually wreak havoc, the England international can give KKR a rapid start which the middle order can later capitalise on.

However, he might face a tough challenge from Mohammed Siraj, who’s on song at the moment. Roy often finds difficulty in tackling swing and that is one challenge he will have to overcome in the forthcoming game.

When it comes to Narayan Jagadeesan, the Chennai-born cricketer has all the talent that’s needed but hasn’t been able to prove himself in the cash-rich league yet. Previously, he was not getting enough opportunities and now when he’s getting, the cricketer is not being able to make the most of it. Despite so, he is very likely to continue as KKR don't have enough options at the moment.

Middle Order: Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana (c), Rinku Singh

Flamboyant batter Venkatesh Iyer started the season really well but unfortunately seemed to have lost his mojo in the last couple of matches. However, at Chinnaswamy, where the ball is expected to come nicely onto the bat, Iyer will be looking forward to taking his chances and providing KKR with enough solidity. With Jagadeesan not in form at the moment, Iyer will have to take extra responsibility in the middle.

Meanwhile, just like Iyer, the skipper Nitish Rana is not scoring enough runs at the moment. In seven matches so far, the 29-year-old has scored only 181 runs and that needs to change immediately. When it comes to his captaincy, there are some question marks as well. The team is chopping and changing too much and on top of that, field placement at certain points looks ridiculous. Thus, there are a lot of things that he needs to improve on at the moment.

When it comes to Rinku Singh, there’s too much pressure on the youngster at the moment. After his match-winning knock against Gujarat Titans, Rinku has failed to replicate similar outings with the willow in hand and that is also because of the lack of support from other batters. So far, the 25-year-old has scored 233 runs with a strike rate of 157.43 in seven matches.

All-rounders: Andre Russell, Sunil Narine

Andre Russell’s form is a huge matter of concern for the Kolkata-based franchise. Be it with the bat or with the ball, Russell hasn’t been able to deliver much so far this season. Despite so, the team management is ready to back him as the West Indies international has the capability to change the complexion of the game at any point. On top of that, he has a tremendous record against Bangalore and that may boost his confidence ahead of the upcoming game.

Just like Andre Russell, Sunil Narine hasn’t been at his best in the ongoing season. He is leaking a lot of runs with the ball and with the bat, nothing has gone in his favour. Thus, there’s a lot of room for improvement for Narine at the moment. At a small ground like Chinnaswamy, things may not go in his favour but given his experience, he would look forward to bouncing back.

Bowlers - Lockie Ferguson, Umesh Yadav, Kulwant Khejroliya, Varun Chakaravarthy

Ace pacer Lockie Ferguson is very likely to make his return to the playing XI. The David Wiese experiment didn’t work well for KKR and at Chinnaswamy, they would look to bring an experienced pacer back since the team is leaking a lot of runs with the ball. Now, Lockie hasn’t been economical as well but his express pace can do the trick against RCB.

When it comes to Umesh Yadav and Kulwant Khejroliya, there’s a lot of room for improvement for these two cricketers. Notably, Khejroliya has done alright in the death overs but he will have to be more consistent with the ball. Umesh, on the other hand, is leaking a lot of runs with the new ball and that needs to stop. 

Varun Chakravarthy has been brilliant so far in the competition. The spin wizard has picked up 10 wickets in the ongoing season and with that, he is ninth in the IPL 2023 Purple Cap race.

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) Probable Playing XI:

Jason Roy, Narayan Jagadeesan (wk), Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana (c), Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Lockie Ferguson, Umesh Yadav, Kulwant Khejroliya, Varun Chakravarthy

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) Probable Impact Players

Litton Das, Anukul Roy, Mandeep Singh, Suyash Sharma, David Wiese