Although twenty days isn’t much in general, the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will certainly feel like a lot. The two groups met at Eden Nurseries in Match 9 of the 2023 Indian Chief Association (IPL) back on April 6. KKR and RCB were both coming off crushing victories when they entered the match.
The result of the challenge was not even close to unsurprising, however, with the hosts outfitting their twist assault to full impact and beating the guests by an incredible 81 runs. From that point forward, their fortunes have been going in inverse bearings.
Bangalore are carefully poised in the top half of the IPL 2023 standings with four victories from seven matches. Kolkata, on the other hand, is eighth after four consecutive defeats.
The first will be eager to capitalize on their home support and move up the standings, while the second will be eager to return to the winning column.
In general, KKR has enjoyed playing at the high-scoring Chinnaswamy Stadium, but this time they clearly lack a team. However, the manner in which they choked RCB 20 days ago will give them hope.
IPL 2023, RCB versus KKR Match Expectation: Bangalore wants to forget about the reverse fixture.
Last time, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakaravarthy, and Suyash Sharma stole the show, but the spinners’ fortunes have changed slightly.
This year, Narine’s performance has been inconsistent at best and terrible at worst, while Varun’s performance has been decent despite his inability to consistently achieve breakthroughs. Suyash, who made his debut in the IPL against RCB, has developed into a dependable operator.
However, the superstars of Bangalore have become more adept at countering spin.
Glenn Maxwell has pitched a couple of thrilling innings thus far, and Faf du Plessis’ middle-of-the-order game has significantly improved. Although Mahipal Lomror and Anuj Rawat have not significantly increased the southpaw quota, Suyash Prabhudessai has entered the fray.
In the meantime, there are numerous issues that the Knight Riders need to resolve. Since joining the team this year, Jason Roy has performed admirably, but the opener suffered an injury in the previous game and may not be performing at his best.
Even though Venkatesh Iyer scored a sensational hundred against the Mumbai Indians (MI), he has not impressed in three of his last four innings. Andre Russell and other well-known actors appear to be nowhere near their best either. However, that is not even their most serious issue.
KKR’s speed assault has been sad up until this point. Umesh Yadav and Kulwant Khejroliya have been both costly and not exactly penetrative, while the abroad imports have ostensibly been far and away more terrible.
Bangalore are the slight underdogs, but Kolkata has match-winners in their ranks and can win by two goals.
Prediction: RCB will prevail in IPL 2023 Match 36.