The top four picture in the Indian Premier League might just become a little clearer on Wednesday when the sides in second and fourth heading into the day play out a pretty significant clash at Eden Gardens.
Kolkata Knight Riders in second place will take on the Rising Pune Supergiant in fourth place where a win for the visitors will all but seal their spot in the playoffs. A win for Kolkata will put distance between themselves and the Sunrisers in the battle for two bites at the postseason cherry.
Kolkata Knight Riders
Although they have been going along really nicely in the Indian Premier League this season the Knight Riders ran into a truck in the form of David Warner in their last match and were given a good going over. You never truly know how a side reacts to that so it will be interesting to see what their response is here.
It will be especially interesting to see how their bowlers go in this match. I’ve felt for a while that their bowling has got away with it a bit in this tournament because of the success and the form of their batsmen so the question is whether their bowling can stand up to scrutiny because they won’t win this tournament if they don’t bowl well when it counts.
Rising Pune Supergiant
It is now two wins on the trot for the Supergiant and that is a run which has moved them up to fourth and solidly in that position too. A win here would actually move them level with Kolkata on points and they would then be looking at a genuine chance of finishing in the top two and getting the bonus of two goes at making the final.
Pune’s batting has really improved over the course of the tournament but their biggest improvement has been with their bowling attack where their lesser known Indian bowlers have come to the party. It should be noted that they haven’t beaten anything in their last two matches but winning form is winning form regardless of who it comes against.
Team News
If he gets in the side this will be Shakib’s last match of the tournament as he leaves to join up with the Bangladesh squad after this match. He is unlikely to play given Kuldeep Jadav’s form though.
Rising Pune have no need to change anything in their side and it would be a surprise if anything does change unless there is a late injury or an illness to contend with.
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Betting
I’m going in bet heavy for this match although I’m not betting on the outcome of it. I say that because I think the side who will be chasing with have more than just the edge here so I’d rather see the result of the toss before I bet on the winner.
My first bet is going to be on the boundaries where the line looks approachable at 42.5. If we ignore the match against Bangalore here the other four matches on the ground have all had more than 40 boundaries. Pune are a boundary machine both in hitting them and in conceding them and the same can be said for Kolkata too. We know the boundaries aren’t the biggest here and we know the outfield is fast so I’m expecting more than 42.5 boundaries in this one.
Ben Stokes has previous with this ground after the World T20 final and that will fire him up to perform well here. He doesn’t need much more firing up though after the previous match where he nailed a magnificent century and I suspect that innings is going to really launch his game to a new level for the rest of this tournament. He has a performance line of 42.5pts which can be covered if he has an average day with the bat and the ball. If he is special with either he’ll cover it in one facet of play so I’m happy to be on the overs here.
Nathan Coulter-Nile has added a new dimension to the Kolkata Knight Riders’ bowling attack and I believe he is a decent price to be the top bowler for the home side here. Prior to the last game where everyone went the distance, Coulter-Nile had taken 11 wickets in four matches including three games where he picked up three wicket hauls. That isn’t a surprise given that he opens the bowling and bowls at the death and his cheap wickets can see him as the leading bowler once again.
Tips
WON – Back Over 42.5 boundaries for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with William Hill
Back it here:
Back B.Stokes’ Performance – Over 42.5pts for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with Bet365
Back him here:
Back N.Coulter-Nile Top Kolkata Knight Riders Bowler for a 2/10 stake at 5.00 with Boylesports
Back him here:
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