Match Preview: Kings XI Punjab vs Royal Challengers Bangalore

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  • Can Vijay help KXIP stay afloat?

    Venue: Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali | Date & Time: 09 May at 1830 (GST)

    BIG PICTURE

    The Kings XI Punjab and the Royal Challengers Bangalore face off on Monday in a winner takes it all contest at the PCA Stadium in Mohali. Both the teams have not had a good IPL season so far and are languishing at the bottom of the table. They have 6 points each, though the RCB have one more game in hand as compared to the Kings XI Punjab.

    RCB and KXIP have some catching up to do. A win for the Royal Challengers would take them to eight points from nine games which, along with a defeat for Pune the following day, would put them two points behind fifth place. The same applies to the Kings XI Punjab. Either way, the winning team will still be four points behind the fourth play-off spot, which will be occupied by the winner of the Mumbai Indians-Sunrisers Hyderabad encounter, who would have twelve points.

    The Kings XI Punjab will take heart from the confidence of Marcus Stoinis who put up an all-round show to play a leading role in their victory against the Delhi Daredevils on Saturday. He scored a scintillating half-century and backed it up with three wickets with the ball. Their death-bowling also remains one of their biggest positives.

    The Royals Challengers Bangalore also registered a thumping win against the Rising Pune Supergiants thanks to yet another masterful run-chase by their skipper Virat Kohli. Kohli, along with the likes of AB de Villiers and Shane Watson, constitutes the best top order in this season’s IPL. Despite the form of their batting stars, the same old bowling issues remain their Achilles heel, seemingly regardless of the combinations they try out.

    KEY BATTLES

    AB de Villiers vs Mohit Sharma: AB de Villiers has been in great form this season and has already stitched together quite a few brilliant partnerships with Virat Kohli at the top of the order. AB can be one of the most destructive batsmen in the world when on song. He will be up against Mohit Sharma who has been incredibly tough to score against because of his perfect slower deliveries.

    Shane Watson vs Glenn Maxwell: Watson has been in great form with the ball this IPL and has been using his experience to great effect. In the last match against Pune, he took 3 wickets for 24 runs off his 4 overs. He will set up a fascinating contest against his fellow countryman Glenn Maxwell who remains one of the best T20 batsmen in the world at this moment.

    WATCH OUT FOR

    Kohli has been superhuman this season

    Kohli has been superhuman this season

    Virat Kohli: The RCB skipper has been in superhuman form this season and is currently the orange cap holder for having scored 541 runs at an average of 90.16 so far. Against the RPSG in the last match, he masterminded yet another successful run-chase finishing with 108 runs from 58 balls. Kohli is in the form of his life and averages well above 100 in T20s this year.

    EXPECTED XIs

    Kings XI Punjab seem to have got into a rhythm and it is unlikely that they would want to change their winning combination. The batsmen are beginning to contribute and their bowlers have done superbly so far.

    Murali Vijay, Marcus Stoinis, Hashim Amla, Glenn Maxwell, David Miller, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Gurkeerat Mann Singh, Akshar Patel, Sandeep Sharma, KC Cariappa, Mohit Sharma

    RCB could well follow the same path and go in with the same eleven so as to not disturb the winning combination. Kohli asserted that Chris Gayle and Sarfaraz Khan were left out in the last match to lend a greater balance to the team. But they might well make a comeback against the Kings XI Punjab – in that scenario Chris Jordan will miss out.

    Lokesh Rahul/Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers (wk), Travis Head, Shane Watson, Sachin Baby/Sarfaraz Khan, Stuart Binny, Parvez Rasool, Chris Jordan, Varun Aaron, Yuzvendra Chahal

    STRAIGHT FROM TWITTER

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