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- Published: May 20, 2024 17:13
New Delhi: Kolkata Knight Riders will take on a marauding Sunrisers Hyderabad side at Ahmedabad for the first Qualifiers of the IPL 2024 tomorrow. In their last game, Hyderabad will walk into this game on the back of a successful run chase against PBKS.
On the other hand, KKR are coming into this game on the back of a washed-out match against the Rajasthan Royals. Eventually, this led to the promotion of Hyderabad to the top two spots and gave them an extra chance for the playoffs.
QUALIFIER 1: KKR vs SRH – SRH
ELIMINATOR: RCB vs RR – RCB
QUALIFIER 2: KKR vs RCB – RCB
FINAL: SRH vs RCB – RCB
We are taking revenge for 2016 IPL, What a script by God. pic.twitter.com/zkGy5imzDa
— Kevin (@imkevin149) May 19, 2024
Contrasting journeys for both teams…
Both teams have a contrasting journey so far till the playoffs. On one hand, the KKR had a flawless season as they ticked all the boxes set by their mentor Gautam Gambhir. KKR has displayed an all-round performance be it in the bowling department or be it in the batting. The mantle of the spin department has been handled by Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarty while the pace bowling has been led from the front by the most expensive player of IPL Mitchell Starc.
However, KKR’s job has been made easy because the Knights possess a strong and dynamic core that revolves around Shreyas, Narine, Russell and Starc. In the batting department though there will be a huge gap to fill after the departure of Phil Salt. Rahmanullah Gurbaz is expected to fill in for Salt.
– Eliminator :
RCB vs RR – we'll take 2022 revenge from them– Qualifier 2:
RCB vs KKR – we'll take 2021 revenge from them– Finals:
RCB vs SRH – we'll take 2016 and 2020 revenge from them @RCBTweets 🚬 pic.twitter.com/0hMf6EijEB— M. (@RCB_Hiv3) May 20, 2024
On the other hand, SRH had a season of highs and lows with high-scoring matches on one end and bottling up easy chases on the other. SRH scripted history by scoring the highest IPL scores two times in a row. The first score of 277/3 was set up against the Mumbai Indians. Sunrisers went a notch higher to score 287/3 against RCB.
KKR vs Rajasthan match called off,SRH vs KKR playing Q1,kasuko na kodaka vasthunaaa @thalabheem033 pic.twitter.com/56J9vst1bI
— Master (@arunkalyan5) May 19, 2024
But things become interesting once the chase sets in. SRH has bottled very easy chases throughout the season while on the other hand, they have chased down a modest total of 165/4 against LSG with 10 wickets and 62 balls to spare. The question is whether unpredictability will help SRH or be the reason for their doom against a relatively consistent side.
It’s going to be KKR vs SRH in Qualifier 1
One step towards getting back the glory 🏆pic.twitter.com/s3p5pmb2qT
— Prakash – ప్రకాశ్ – प्रकाश (@saireddy95) May 19, 2024
The battle between KKR and SRH is expected to be nerve-wracking for all the fans and players alike. Although KKR holds an edge over SRH of 17 against 9, the Purple Army will be weary of the dangerous form that the Eagles are in this season. With the likes of Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma and Heinrich Klassen in the side, Gambhir and his boys have to collectively plan out to thwart the opposition at Ahmedabad.