Bangalore: The focus has remained firmly on cricket this time around and in what seems to be the perfect finale, the season's most consistent team Kings XI Punjab would eye a maiden triumph against the ever-resilient Kolkata Knight Riders in the title clash of the seventh Indian Premier League today.
After a few controversy-marred seasons, the IPL organisers can finally heave a sigh of relief with the ongoing edition passing off rather smoothly.
Having cracked a 58-ball 122 that paved the way for KXIP's entry into their first IPL final, veteran opener Virender Sehwag along with Glenn Maxwell and David Miller will be the biggest threat for KKR, who will bank on their strong bowling unit, led by Sunil Narine.
Players from both sides will have their job cut out as they will look to gift their owners Shah Rukh Khan and Priety Zinta, who had played on-screen lovers in Bollywood film Veer-Zaara, the trophy.
Unlike Kolkata, who have won the title once before, Punjab have never been a part of the finals.
For Kolkata, to repeat the feat of lifting the trophy for the second time, however, will be a daunting task considering the opponents they are faced with.
Kolkata will also have to cope with Maxwell, who is among the top run-getters this season.
Boasting of a strong middle-order in Miller, Manan Vohra, skipper George Bailey and Wriddhiman Saha, KXIP should not worry too much about Maxwell's lean patch of late.
The 25-year-old Australian will like to take a leaf out of his 90-plus run knocks in Abu Dhabi and Cuttack in the group stage of the tournament.
