IPL 2024 Preview: On Monday at home in the IPL, defending champions Chennai Super Kings will be looking to get their campaign back on track against a formidable Kolkata Knight Riders. As such, they would have high expectations for their top order.
Despite successive losses, the CSK locker room seems calm, but the administration will want to fix the issues.
To give CSK the powerplay start, highly regarded Rachin Ravindra and skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad must improve. Gaikwad is 118.91, while Ravindra, who has played little in the last two matches, will want to contribute.
Shivam Dube leads CSK in runs scored with 148 at 160.86 percent.
Young Sameer Rizwi’s comeback to the team remains uncertain. The uncapped 20-year-old batsman displayed promising promise with his fourteen off six balls against Gujarat Titans, but a single in the following match against Delhi Capitals caused his dismissal against SRH.
For various reasons, pacers Mustafizur Rahman and Matheesha Pathirana missed the previous match, exposing CSK bowling deficiencies. CSK will have to find creative ways to compensate if they miss the KKR encounter.
Thus, Deepak Chahar, Tushar Deshpande, Mukesh Choudhary, Moeen Ali, Ravindra Jadeja, and Maheesh Theekshana will be responsible.
KKR, who are tied for the most wins with Rajathan Royals, have benefited from their bold batting style. KKR’s batting order allows them to keep a steady pace throughout the innings.
Sunil Narine’s return was a genius move. Narine is the team’s highest run scorer this season and will challenge the CSK bowlers. Phil Salt, his opening partner, has also helped the Trinidadian.
Andre Russell and Rinku Singh have done well, but Ramandeep Singh and Shreyas Iyer, the middle order, must be more consistent.
KKR’s bowling has been faultless, with Harshit Rana, Russell, and Vaibhav Arora contributing. After two poor games, Mitchell Starc and Varun Chakaravarthy are slowly recovering.
KKR has performed flawlessly in all areas, and they will not change their starting lineup for this match.
Due to Chepauk’s unusual pitch behavior, another run-fest is possible.
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The weather
The coastal city is anticipated to experience a highly humid and breezy climate, with temperatures hovering between 30 and 31 degrees Celsius.
By head to head
Chennai holds a 29-game Head-to-Head advantage through 18 victories. With ten victories and one game ending in a draw, KKR has fallen behind.
XI CSK PROBABLE
Daryl Mitchell, Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni, Matheesha Pathirana, Deepak Chahar, Tushar Deshpande, Mustafizur Rahman, Rachin Ravindra, Ajinkya Rahane, and Daturaj Gaikwad (c).
KKR XI PROBABLE
Andre Russell, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Mitchell Starc, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, and Shreyas Iyer forthright.
WATCH: Sameer Rizvi shines in IPL debut with two sixes against Rashid Khan
