Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will take on Punjab Kings (PBKS) in a crucial Indian Premier League 2023 (IPL) match on Monday, May 8. KKR beat Sunrisers Hyderabad in their last game by five runs while defending 171 runs at home and remained hopeful in the race for playoff qualification this season. Nitish Rana-led side has recorded just four wins from ten games and are placed in the eighth position in the points table.
On the other hand, Punjab Kings failed to defend 214 runs against Mumbai Indians in their last game and dropped to the no.7 position in the points table with five wins from ten matches this season. Liam Livingstone smashed 82* off 42 to help Punjab post a big total but it was another awful performance from the bowlers while defending. Shikhar Dhawan-led team has failed to record two back-to-back wins since registering wins in the opening two games this season but has won three of their last five encounters against Kolkata Knight Riders.
Pitch Report: KKR vs PBKS
The pitch at Kolkata's Eden Gardens has a batting-friendly surface and teams are enjoying big totals in T20 games here this season. Teams batting first have recorded three 200-plus totals from four games here this season. The average first innings score here is 163 after 81 IPL games but it's a staggering 222 in IPL 2023. Chennai Super Kings recorded the highest total of 235 runs here this season so, fans can expect another high-scoring clash on Monday.
Will Toss Matter?
Very unlikely. Teams batting first have won only 34 of 81 IPL matches here but it's a different story this season. Teams batting first have won three of four matches here and scored 200-plus totals in all three games.
Eden Gardens, Kolkata - The Numbers Game
Basic IPL Stats
- Total matches: 81
- Matches won batting first: 34
- Matches won bowling first: 46
Average IPL Stats
- Average 1st Innings scores: 163
- Average 2nd Innings scores: 148
Score Stats for IPL matches
- Highest total recorded - 235/4 (20 Ov) by CSK vs KKR
- Highest score chased - 191/3 (19.3 Ov) by GT vs RR
- Lowest score defended - 129/7 (16 Ov) by KKR vs RCB
Full Squads -
Kolkata Knight Riders Squad: Rahmanullah Gurbaz(wk), Jason Roy, Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana(c), Andre Russell, Rinku Singh, Sunil Narine, Shardul Thakur, Vaibhav Arora, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy, Anukul Roy, Suyash Sharma, N Jagadeesan (wk), Kulwant Khejroliya, Mandeep Singh, Tim Southee, David Wiese, Umesh Yadav, Aarya Desai, Johnson Charles (wk)
Punjab Kings Squad: Prabhsimran Singh, Shikhar Dhawan(c), Matthew Short, Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma(wk), Sam Curran, Shahrukh Khan, Harpreet Brar, Rishi Dhawan, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh, Nathan Ellis, Sikandar Raza, Atharva Taide, Mohit Rathee, Shivam Singh, Kagiso Rabada, Harpreet Singh Bhatia, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Baltej Singh, Vidhwath Kaverappa, Gurnoor Brar
