IPL 2018, Eliminator: Dinesh Karthik's Knights start as favourites against Rajasthan

Kolkata: Two teams. Only one spot. The loser goes home packing. Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) will give their all when they battle it out in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018 Eliminator match at Eden Gardens, Kolkata, on Wednesday.

Contrasting to their playoff rivals Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK), the two teams have sneaked into the playoffs through some good run of form coupled with a hint of luck.

Dinesh Karthik’s Knights sealed the last-four berth for the sixth time in history, thanks to three back to back wins on the trot, that meant beating SRH in their final game to make the cut. Skipper Karthik has been leading from the front with 438 runs this season, proving to be a vital finisher for his side. Contributions from Chris Lynn, Sunil Narine and Robin Uthappa have also come handy.

Not only that, the spin troika of Kuldeep Yadav, Piyush Chawla and Narine have also caused all sort of headaches for batsmen.

Rajasthan will find themselves fortunate to be where they are after Mumbai Indians (MI) and Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) lost their respective final matches that sealed a ticket for the Royal Blues in the last four.

After splashing the cash heavily in the auctions, the inaugural champs hit a low in the initial phase before bouncing back with collective performances in the business stage of the tournament. And with the Eliminator approaching, they cannot afford to put a foot wrong now.  

RR will once again need to do without the services of Jos Buttler (who has emerged as the talisman in recent times) and Jos Buttler, who have flown back to England to fulfil national duties.

In the absence of Steve Smith, Ajinkya Rahane has failed to hit top gear and he will need to come good. Names such as Jofra Archer and Krishnappa Gowtham will also be key to Rajasthan’s fortunes.

But the ball is in the court of the Knights, who are the only team among to the top four to hold a home advantage. If they manage to outclass their opponents on Wednesday, the second qualifier will also be played in their own den.

The Shah Rukh Khan co-owned side has also outclassed the Royals, both home and away this season and it remains to be seen if the visitors can defy the odds on Wednesday.

Squads:

Kolkata Knight Riders: Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Chris Lynn, Dinesh Karthik (Captain/Wicket-keeper), Robin Uthappa, Mitchell Johnson, Piyush Chawla, Kuldeep Yadav, Shubman Gill, Ishank Jaggi, Nitish Rana, Vinay Kumar, Apoorv Wankhade, Rinku Singh, Shivam Mavi, Cameron Delport, Javon Searles, Tom Curran, Prasidh Krishna.

Rajasthan Royals: Heinrich Klassen, Jaydev Unadkat, Sanju Samson, Jofra Archer, Krishnappa Gowtham, Ajinkya Rahane, Darcy Short, Rahul Tripathi, Dhawal Kulkarni, Zahir Khan Pakteen, Ben Laughlin, Stuart Binny, Dushmantha Chameera, Anureet Singh, Aryaman Vikram Birla, Midhun S, Shreyas Gopal, Prashant Chopra, Jatin Saxena, Ankit Sharma, Mahipal Lomror.