Indian T20 League 2024 

Match 31: KOL vs RAJ

Preview 

Kolkata (KOL) will host Rajasthan (RAJ) in match 31 of the Indian T20 League 2024 on Tuesday (April 16) at the Eden Gardens. While KOL is coming off a morale boosting 8 wicket win over Lucknow (LUC), RAJ edged past Punjab (PUN) in their last match. Both sides are in imperious form and have only lost one game this season so far. With 10 points in its kitty, RAJ is currently at the top of the table. KOL on the other hand is just a rung below at second. 

KOL has looked like a completely different unit under Gautam Gambhir. He has instilled a different level of confidence amongst the players and it is apparent in the way they have played their cricket so far. Every player of this squad understands their role in the team and delivers performances accordingly.  In the batting department they possess the likes of Phil Salt, Sunil Narine and Angkrish Raghuvanshi up top. Sunil Narine in particular has been mighty impressive. The West Indian has scored 167 runs at a menacing strike rate of 183.33. He and Salt have formed a dangerous opening pair. Raghuvanshi has flourished at number 3. Then, the men in purple have skipper Shreyas Iyer and Venkatesh Iyer in their middle order.  

The Iyer duo has failed to make significant contributions consistently but have done well in patches. Russell at six has lived up to his name and essayed his role as usual. Mitchell Starc, Vaibhav Arora, Sunil Narine, and Harshit Rana will be the bowlers to keep an eye on. While Starc and Arora will start with the new ball, Rana and Narine will have the onus to contain the opposition batters during the middle overs. Russell can also prove in handy during the middle overs and even has the ability to pick wickets. The Caribbean has a quick bumper up his sleeves and he can use it to trouble RAJ batters   

RAJ has arguably been the most consistent side in this edition of the tournament. They have a well rounded squad with quality players in their ranks. Jos Butler, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson and Riyan comprise the top four of RAJ’s batting department. Any bowler in the world would fear bowling to such an intimidating quartet.  When on song these batters can single handedly change the outcome of the match. Such is the quality the men in pink possess. Special shoutout to Riyan Parag who once was lambasted for his string of poor performances is now the centre of attention. With 284 runs in 6 innings, the dynamic batter is only behind Virat Kohli (361 runs) in the orange cap race. 

How can we talk about RAJ and not mention their bowling attack. They have a perfect blend of vast experience and exuberance youth in their lineup. Trent Boult, Nande Burger, Avesh Khan and Kuldip Sen are the pacers in the attack. While Boult and Burger start the innings with ball in hand, Khan and Sen are responsible for keeping a check on the flow of runs during the middle overs. In the spin bowling department they have the reliable pair of R.Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal. Both up till now have come up with match defining performances especially Chahal. The leg spinner has rarely given any loose balls, has been spot on with his line, lengths and pace variations as a result holds the purple cap. 

Ahead of this feisty clash, let us have a look at how the two sides will fare out on Tuesday. 

Match Details

Match: KOL vs RAJ, 31st Match, Indian T20 League 2024

Date: Tuesday, April 16, 2024

Time: 7:30 PM

Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata 

Pitch and Weather Report

The pitch at Eden Gardens is a batting haven. Batters from both sides will have a ball batting on this wicket. Pacers have picked 519 wickets whereas spinners have 390 dismissals to their name at this venue. 

Extreme hot and dry conditions are predicted for the day. Weather forecast is 29 degree celsius for the day. 

KOL vs RAJ Squads

KOL: Philip Salt (wk), Shreyas Iyer (c), Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh , Mitchell Starc, Harshit Rana, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakaravarthy, Suyash Sharma, Anukul Roy, Manish Pandey, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rinku Singh, Allah Ghazanfar, Sakib Hussain, Sherfane Rutherford, Chetan Sakariya, Nitish Rana, Srikar Bharat, Dushmantha Chameera 

RAJ: Sanju Samson (c & wk), Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, Tanush Kotian, Keshav Maharaj, Trent Boult, Avesh Khan, Kuldeep Sen, Yuzvendra Chahal, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Shubham Dubey, Navdeep Saini, Abid Mushtaq, Ravichandran Ashwin, Jos Buttler, Sandeep Sharma, Nandre Burger, Donovan Ferreira, Kunal Singh Rathore   

KOL vs RAJ Probable Playing XIs

KOL: Philip Salt (wk), Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer (c), Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Mitchell Starc, Rinku Singh, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakaravarthy

RAJ: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson (c & wk), Riyan Parag, Shimron Hetmyer, Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Trent Boult, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Sen, Avesh Khan

Match Prediction

We predict KOL to use home advantage, register their fifth win of the tournament and displace RAJ at the top of the table. 

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Team 1




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