DC vs KKR Match Prediction: Who will win today's IPL 2024 match?
It wasn't long ago that Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer were part of the same team in the Indian Premier League. Confronted with a tough decision ahead of the 2022 mega-auction, the Delhi Capitals decided to retain the former and release the latter, who was picked up by the Kolkata Knight Riders.
The duo's fortunes have been up and down since then. While Pant missed IPL 2023 due to injuries suffered in a car crash, Shreyas suffered the same fate owing to a dodgy back. Nevertheless, both have returned this year and are slowly finding their feet.
The duo will lead their respective sides when DC and KKR lock horns in Match 16 of IPL 2024 at Visakhapatnam on Wednesday, April 3. Interestingly, both come into this contest on the back of wins over two of the biggest teams in the competition.
The Capitals recently handed the Chennai Super Kings their first loss of the competition to get off the mark. They will want to sustain that momentum at their adopted home ground, which is expected to have more fans rooting for them this time around.
The Knight Riders, meanwhile, find themselves second in the standings, with two wins in as many games. In their last game, KKR eased past the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, thanks to Sunil Narine's throwback blitz at the top of the order.
DC have won their last three meetings against KKR, but both teams are significantly different now. Can Delhi secure another home win in IPL 202, or will Kolkata make their trip down the east coast worthwhile?
IPL 2024, DC vs KKR: Teams look to sustain momentum
Prithvi Shaw came into the DC side after missing out on the first two games and made an immediate impact. That only made people wonder why he didn't play at the start of the campaign even more.
Nevertheless, Shaw is here and ready to take on the likes of Mitchell Starc and Harshit Rana. Starc, in particular, has been unimpressive throughout IPL 2024 and desperately needs to find some form and justify the massive chunk of KKR's purse he's commanding.
However, Delhi are arguably still too dependent on Shaw and David Warner to give them a good start. If that doesn't happen, there might not be enough middle-order might to keep the team afloat.
The fast bowlers - Mukesh Kumar and Khaleel Ahmed, to be specific - were at their deadly best against the Super Kings. But KKR's drawback could be quality pace in the middle overs, which DC might not have without a firing Anrich Nortje, who is slowly easing himself back after injury.
Moreover, Kolkata's spin attack could prove to be a point of difference in Visakhapatnam. They also have enough batting depth even without Nitish Rana, with Sunil Narine returning to his old ways at the top of the order.
KKR are clearly the better team on paper, but DC, too, are on the back of a win. The safe money would be on the away side to stay unbeaten.
Prediction: KKR to win Match 16 of IPL 2024