RCB vs KKR Preview: Bengaluru hosts Kolkata in a high-scoring Chinnaswamy

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) host Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Friday, March 29. RCB have started their campaign with one win and one loss from two games. In their first game, which was also the curtain-raiser of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, Faf du Plessis and Co. suffered a six-wicket defeat against defending champions Chennai Super Kings at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. However, they came back strongly after that defeat and got the better of the Punjab Kings at home. On the back of a sensational half-century from Virat Kohli, RCB chased down a target of 177 runs with four wickets and as many balls to spare.

Kolkata Knight Riders received a major boost as Shreyas Iyer returned to their lineup after missing out last season due to back issues. The former two-time champions started with a home game at Eden Gardens, Kolkata as they faced Sunrisers Hyderabad. Shreyas couldn’t get off the mark on his IPL return but crucial fifties from Andre Russell and Phil Salt propelled the Knights to 208/7 in their 20 overs. Despite the best efforts of Heinrich Klaasen, KKR managed to emerge victorious by a narrow four-run margin. They will be playing their second match of the tournament after a five-day break.

Head to Head

Pitch Report

The M Chinnaswamy Stadium is known for producing belters and the boundaries are also on the shorter side. There is very little respite for the bowlers at this venue. Chasing teams have had the upper hand at this venue as defending totals can become quite difficult with the pitch remaining true throughout the match and short boundaries on offer.

Probable Playing XI

Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Faf Du Plessis (c), Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, Dinesh Karthik, Anuj Rawat (wk), Mayank Dagar, Alzarri Joseph, Mohammad Siraj, Yash Dayal

Impact Sub – Mahipal Lomror

Kolkata Knight Riders: Phil Salt (wk), Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer (c), Nitish Rana, Ramandeep Singh, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Mitchell Starc, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy

Impact Sub – Suyash Sharma