IPL 2024 KKR v RCB Preview - Spin it to win it

Key match stats

Pitch Stats – Eden Gardens IPL Records

Pitch report Eden Gardens 10 most recent matches in the IPL

Team form KKR vs RCB
KKR: WWLWL
RCB: LLLLL

Recent meetings:

IPL 2024 - KKR won by 7 wickets

IPL 2023 - KKR won by 21 runs, KKR won by 81 runs

Weather

General Forecast: Dry, clear and hot
Chance of dew: Low

Preview KKR vs RCB

KKR will be looking to get their top 2 push back on track as they play host to the IPL's basement team, RCB, at Eden Gardens.

A Jos Buttler masterclass robbed the Knight Riders of the opportunity to take top spot earlier in the week. Of course RCB can sympathise with Kolkata after what the England white ball captain did to them earlier in the season too!

Both these teams have been involved in some very high-scoring matches so far this season although RCB are generally coming out on the wrong side of the results. The Eden Gardens pitch report certainly suggests that we could be in for some big hitting again in this game but it's worth noting that this is an afternoon fixture where dew is not going to be a factor.

Temperatures in Kolkata are expected to peak at around the 42C mark on Sunday which will undoubtedly take a lot out of the players and bake a pitch that does offer a bit of turn on occasion.

In fact, you only need to think back to the match that these 2 sides contested at Eden Gardens last season to see how impactful slow bowling can be on this surface. On that occassion, KKR made 204 batting first before bowling out RCB for just 123 with 9 wickets falling to spin! There have long been problems for RCB around how they go about building a winning total in those middle overs and we've not seen any sign of things improving so far in 2024.

Had this have been an evening game you could have bet your house on the side winning the toss batting 2nd. However, I'd certainly fancy that if KKR win the toss that they'll be happy to have a bat, have RCB run around in a furnance for a couple of hours and then grind them down in the 2nd innings with a minimum 8 overs of spin.

At the same time, KKR have no fears chasing against this RCB line-up as we saw when these 2 sides met at the end of March. In fact, RCB haven't successfully defended a total at their last 5 attempts in the IPL and going even further back have just 1 win batting first from 8 tries.

On the flip side, KKR have won in 4 of the last 5 IPL matches where they've been asked to chase. Where sides have been successful in defending scores against KKR here at Eden Gardens in recent seasons is in putting up really big first innings totals! CSK (235) and SRH (228) both won here last season doing just that. Does this RCB team have it in them to go really big if asked to bat first?

The fact that RCB have not passed the 200 mark in any of their last 12 IPL first innings suggests it'll be a tough ask and as we've alluded to all season, they really don't have the bowling attack to defend even par scores.

KKR RCB head to head

RCB bowling vs KKR batting

4 wickets! That's all that RCB have managed in the powerplay in 7 matches this season. That is miles behind even the 2nd worst record in the powerplay (CSK have 7) and puts them in serious trouble against any team in the IPL but particularly one with the strength and depth of KKR.

Salt head to head Mohammed Siraj T20 cricket

There was a bit of agro between Phil Salt and Mohammed Siraj during last season's IPL when the former was playing at DC. Given both the above powerplay stats and the head to head between the 2, it might be worth Siraj keeping quiet until Salt is on his way back to the pavilion.

RCB middle overs (overs 7 to 15) bowling performance in IPL 2024

The big issue for RCB is that the powerplay should be their strong point with the ball! It certainly was last season when they took regular wickets that helped protect a relatively weak attack during the middle and death overs. Those issues throughout the later half of the innings haven't gone away and now they are being taken advantage of in the most extreme manner thanks to opposition sides generally leaving the powerplay with a healthy score and wickets in hand.

Death overs run rate IPL 2024

This KKR side have the ability to be brutal at the death regardless of who the opposition are as evidenced by their run rate of 14 an over in the last 5. KKR won the earlier fixture between these 2 sides with 21 balls to spare so we didn't get to see the kind of damage that the likes of Russell and Rinku Singh might be able to do to this RCB attack. Bengaluru might not be spared this time around...

KKR bowling vs RCB batting

As a side that has had its fair share of big money flops over the years, RCB fans can perhaps sympathise with those supporting KKR over the disappointing returns from Mitch Starc so far this season.

Starc powerplay record IPL 2024

We all know that Starc's aggressive full length means that he is susceptible to conceding runs but it's lack of penetration, particularly in the powerplay that has been most concerning. I suspect that if he weren't the most expensive player in the history of the IPL that he would almost certainly have lost his place by now.

KKR might still want to consider their options both as a result of the form of Arora who has 5 powerplay wickets in the 11 overs he's bowled this season and in order to get Anukul Roy back into the side.

Roy delievred 2 overs for just 6 runs in the match between RCB and KKR earlier in the season, taking advantage of the match-up against Bengaluru's right-handed top order. More generally, KKR have only opted to use 4 overs of spin in the powerplay so far this season with half of those delivered by Roy in his 2 appearances to date. Of course if KKR do bat first and bat well then they might have the luxury of playing both Starc and Roy as an impact sub.

Looking to match KKR's power at the back end of the innings will be a former Knight Rider himself in Dinesh Karthik. He has 661 career T20 runs at Eden Gardens at a strike rate of 137 but it's his batting at the death so far this season which has been spectacular.

Dinesh Karthik death overs record IPL 2024

Off the back of a very poor 2023 season, I and I'm sure many others probably thought that Dinesh should hang up his pads and commit full time to the career in broadcasting that is awaiting him. However, he's proved everyone wrong and is currently the most feared closer in the league this season!

---

All stats used in this blog are from my own databases which are freely accessible below
IPL player head to head records
IPL player records by stadium
IPL stadium records.
Images are my own with the exception of player profiles and highlights within GIFs which are not intended to infringe copyright- read full disclaimer. Background images are used under a creative commons license or otherwise royalty free.