IPL 6: Match 38 - CSK vs KKR - Kolkata Knight Riders Preview

After a morale-boosting win over Kings XI Punjab, defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders will lock horns with last year’s finalists Chennai Super Kings today at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium. It promises to be an intriguing contest as long as the Knight Riders manage to remain patient and hang in till the last ball. CSK, on the other hand, will be boosted by captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s rich vein of form; however, the boys from Kolkata might just spoil their party.

The batting looks solid on paper, with young Manvinder Bisla returning to form against the Kings XI. Skipper Gautam Gambhir will look to attack the Chennai bowlers early on, and will be the danger man at the top of the order. SA veteran Jacques Kallis had a memorable outing in the last game, and will have to play the sheet anchor role. Yusuf Pathan can be devastating, and if he gets going, CSK will have it tough. Eoin Morgan and Rajat Bhatia automatically select themselves, while Debabrata Das is also handy with the bat. In case KKR decide to bench Das, all-rounder Ryan ten Doeschate could get his first game, or even Ryan McLaren could make a return.

On the bowling front, the resources are slightly limited. Against a team of the calibre of CSK, the bowling attack must have fire and venom in equal measure. To that end, speedster Brett Lee must return to spearhead the charge, with Lakshmipathy Balaji and Rajat Bhatia providing ample backup. Kallis with his medium pace and wily spinner Sunil Narine make for the ideal bowling combination to thwart CSK’s winning run. Whatever the combination turns out to be, it must be capable enough of making early inroads into the Yellow batting lineup and sustain the pressure right throughout the 20 overs.

Conditions – Traditionally, the pitch here has something in it for the slower bowlers and hence, both sides might pack their final squads with spinners. In recent times however, the track has been good for batting, and the ideal team lineup should have depth in both departments. Still, it may just be an even contest between bat and ball today.

X Factor:

Manvinder Bisla – The wicket-keeper from Haryana seems to have found his feet at last in this tournament with a quickfire 50 in the last game. He will look to continue in the same vein against the Yellow brigade and must use his feet cleverly against their spin attack.

Prediction – I’m really bad at making predictions (given that I’ve been wrong most of the times). Nevertheless, I’d back CSK for the win today owing to their charismatic captain and deep batting line-up. If KKR can dismiss the in-form Michael Hussey early and put pressure on the middle order, the going may not be smooth for the Chennai team. A very close contest is on the cards – and my bet’s still on CSK to win this.