The weekend has arrived once again which means we are all set for another double header of action in the Indian Premier League on Saturday, one which gets underway in Abu Dhabi as the Kolkata Knight Riders host the Delhi Capitals.
Kolkata go into the match in the final play-off berth but they are a sitting duck in that position and a defeat here will open the door to a strengthening chasing pack. Delhi Capitals are looking to return to the top of the table with a win of their own here.
Kolkata Knight Riders
There have been some pretty average batting displays in this competition and unfortunately for the Kolkata Knight Riders they are the holder of most of them. Twice they have failed to make 120 and another three times they haven’t made it to 150 and that accounts for half of their batting efforts so Brendon McCullum and his coaching staff aren’t going to have to search too deep to find out where their big problems lie.
Given that we are 10 games into the campaign though and if anything they are getting worse with the bat, you get the feeling there isn’t a fix available so Kolkata have issues. The other big problem they have got is the form of their marquee signing Pat Cummins. The fact that he has had more of an impact with the bat than the ball this season sums everything up and highlights where their campaign has been. Teams don’t like to spend big on a player and drop them so they really need the Australian to be counted in his primary role and fast.
Delhi Capitals
The Delhi Capitals go into this match off the back of a rare defeat but they might just have got the Kings XI Punjab at the wrong time. They chose to rest Amrich Nortje which seemed like a brave move in advance and a poor one afterwards but you would think they would re-address the balance of their side and come back fighting here. This is a team who up until recently looked the best team in the competition by a good way.
It is never easy to get form back but it should be a lot easier for the Capitals because their drop off came due to injuries and with those players returning and the balance of the side getting back to what it was when they were a relentless winning machine it would be a surprise if Delhi don’t finish the regular season strongly. A win here would restore confidence and you sense would get them back on track to finish the campaign top of the table.
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Key Men
Kolkata Knight Riders are absolutely desperate for Pat Cummins to perform here, especially with Shikhar Dhawan in the sort of form he is currently in. It is now one wicket in seven matches for the Australian which has to change.
Shikhar Dhawan is in sublime touch for the Delhi Capitals right now and if he gets his side off to another decent start then it isn’t going to take much for the Knight Riders to come under real pressure given their batting woes at present.
Betting
Anyone who has been following my picks throughout this tournament will not be surprised to know that my bet for this opening match of the day is under 36.5 boundaries. I keep on saying that these day games are low scoring and that is even more the case here at Abu Dhabi and that is before we consider the form of the two sides. It isn’t a coincidence that nearly all of the day games have been low scoring, that is very much condition created.
The boundaries don’t come very easily here as I’ve mentioned but they are not coming very easily anywhere for the Kolkata Knight Riders who have just been restricted to 84 without even being bowled out and who will surely have to adopt a safer approach here. It is going better for the Delhi Capitals but if you take Shikhar Dhawan’s runs out it wouldn’t be. If he goes early there is no guarantee they will plough the runs up either so under 36.5 boundaries looks to be something of a penalty kick here.
Tips
Back Under 36.5 boundaries for a 3/10 stake at 1.83 with William Hill
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