Sharjah: In the 46th match of IPL 2020, Kings XI Punjab captain KL Rahul won the toss and opted to bat first against Eoin Morgan-led Kolkata Knight Riders here at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Monday. Both teams are unchanged for today's match. KKR's Andre Russell's has not recovered yet, so he missed his second successive match in IPL 2020.
KKR and KXIP have faced each other 26 times in the IPL history thus far, with KKR leading the head-to-head record 18-8 (win/loss) over KXIP.
Earlier this season, the two sides had met each other in Abu Dhabi on October 10. In that game, KKR had defeated KXIP by two runs riding on then captain Dinesh Karthik's 29-ball 58 and a half-century from Shubman Gill. KKR pacer Prasidh Krishna had scalped a three-wicket haul against KXIP back then.
KKR currently are placed at the fourth position in the IPL 2020 points table with 12 points from 11 matches, which include six wins and five losses. In the meantime, KXIP is placed fifth in the standings with 10 points, having won five games and lost six.
Also Read - IPL 2020: KXIP, KKR face each other, crucial match for top 4 spot
Pitch report: 'The pitch hasn't changed a lot, it might have got a bit slower, the team batting first will still struggle to know the par score. That would mean the captain winning the toss might opt to chase, especially with the dew expected and the wicket getting a bit better to bat under light,' reckon Simon Doull and Kumar Sangakkara, in their pitch report.
Eoin Morgan: We would have bowled as well, pretty much for the same reasons. We did well against DC, played the way we wanted. Our fate is still in our hands, that's good. We have depended a lot on match-ups, it works at times, it doesn't at times. Andre Russell is unfortunately still not fit, so same team
KL Rahul: We will bowl first. Like to have a target on the board, the dew might have an effect as well in the second innings. Winning gives a lot of confidence to the group, it makes them keep performing better and better. The back-room staff have been phenomenal right from even the tournament started. No changes to our team
Teams:
Kolkata Knight Riders (Playing XI): Shubman Gill, Nitish Rana, Rahul Tripathi, Dinesh Karthik(w), Eoin Morgan(c), Sunil Narine, Pat Cummins, Lockie Ferguson, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Prasidh Krishna, Varun Chakravarthy
Kings XI Punjab (Playing XI): KL Rahul(w/c), Mandeep Singh, Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran, Glenn Maxwell, Deepak Hooda, Chris Jordan, Murugan Ashwin, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh
