What happened the last time KKR played against RR? Exploring Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals' last match scorecards in IPL
Shreyas Iyer's Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will take on the Sanju Samson-led Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Match 31 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 at Eden Gardens on Tuesday (April 16).
The two teams have locked horns 28 times, with the Knight Riders having a slight edge over the Royals. KKR lead RR 14-13 in head-to-head battles, while one game didn't yield a result.
Rajasthan beat Kolkata by nine wickets in their most recent faceoff at the above-mentioned venue last year.
Asked to bat first, KKR posted 149/8 in their allotted 20 overs. Venkatesh Iyer starred with the bat, scoring 57 runs off 42 balls in an innings laced with four sixes and two boundaries. Nitish Rana (22 off 17), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (18 off 12) and Rinku Singh (16 off 18) got starts but threw their wickets away.
Yuzvendra Chahal emerged as the top wicket-taker for RR, returning with figures of 4/25, while Trent Boult also picked up two wickets.
In response, RR achieved the target with 6.5 overs to spare. Andre Russell ran out Jos Buttler for a duck to provide a flying start for the Knight Riders.
Yashavi Jaiswal and skipper Sanju Samson then stayed unbeaten to take their team past the finish line. Jaiswal smashed an unbeaten 98 off 47 deliveries with the help of five sixes and 13 boundaries. Samson also chipped in with 48 off 29, including five maximums and three boundaries. The duo shared a century-plus stand for the second wicket.
Click here to check out the full KKR vs RR IPL 2023 scorecard.
KKR's scorecard from their last IPL fixture
Kolkata Knight Riders beat Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) by eight wickets at Eden Gardens in their last IPL game on April 14.
After being asked to bat first, LSG put up 161/7 in their allotted 20 overs. Vaibhav Arora and Mitchell Starc sent back Quinton de Kock and Deepak Hooda early to reduce Lucknow to 39/2 after 4.4 overs. KL Rahul (39 off 27) and Ayush Badoni (29 off 27) then steadied the ship for Lucknow.
Marcus Stoinis failed to fire but Nicholas Pooran's late flourish helped the team put up a fighting total. The left-hander scored 45 off 32, hitting four sixes and two boundaries.
Mitchell Starc starred with the ball for KKR, finishing with figures of 3/28, while Vaibhav Arora, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakaravarthy, and Andre Russell bagged one wicket apiece.
In response, Kolkata achieved the target with 4.2 overs to spare. Mohsin Khan provided a flying start for LSG by dismissing Sunil Narine and Angkrish Raghuvanshi for single-digit scores.
Philip Salt and skipper Shreyas Iyer then shared a 120-run partnership for the third wicket to take KKR home. Salt top scored with an unbeaten 89 off 47 in an innings comprising three sixes and 14 boundaries. Iyer scored run-a-ball 38, including six boundaries.
Click here to check out full KKR vs LSG IPL 2024 scorecard.
RR's scorecard from their last IPL game
Rajasthan Royals beat Punjab Kings (PBKS) by three wickets in a last-over thriller in Mullanpur in their last IPL game on April 13.
Put into bat first, PBKS got off to the worst possible start. Late contributions from Ashutosh Sharma, Jitesh Sharma and Liam Livingstone helped the team post 147/8 in 20 overs. Ashutosh top scored with 31 off 16, smashing three sixes and one boundary. Meanwhile, Jitesh and Livingstone also chipped in with 29 (24) and 21 (14), respectively.
Avesh Khan and Keshav Maharaj starred with the ball for RR, returning with two wickets apiece. Trent Boult, Kuldeep Sen and Yuzvendra Chahal shared one wicket each.
In response, RR achieved the target off the penultimate ball. Yashasvi Jaiswal (39 off 28) and Tanush Kotian (24 off 31) provided a promising start for the Royals by sharing a 56-run stand for the first wicket.
Punjab then bounced back with a cluster of wickets, including in-form Riyan Parag (23 off 18), who threw away a good start. Shimron Hetmyer smashed 27 off just 10, including three sixes and one boundary, to finish off the game for the Royals.
Stand-in captain Sam Curran and Kagiso Rabada emerged as top-wicket takers for PBKS with two wickets apiece. Arshdeep Singh, Liam Livingstone and Harshal Patel bagged one wicket each.
Click here to check out full RR vs PBKS IPL 2024 scorecard.