IPL 2024, Match 3: Kolkata Knight Riders vs Sunrisers Hyderabad Match Preview

After CSK and RCB kick off the Indian Premier League 2024 (IPL 2024) with a riveting encounter, the action will continue in the cash-rich league as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will take on each other in Match 3. The two teams will begin their campaign on Saturday, March 23 at Eden Gardens, Kolkata.

Both sides will hope to turn around their fortunes in the upcoming season after failing to qualify for the playoffs in 2023. Kolkata finished seventh on the points table with six wins from 14 matches having 12 points to their name. The two-time champions missed the services of their regular skipper Shreyas Iyer who was ruled out of the entire season due to a back injury.

With Iyer back in the team for the upcoming season, KKR would expect their captain to lead from the front and take them to the playoffs after a two-season gap. They further bolstered their squad in the mini-auction buying the likes of Mitchell Starc (24.75 Crore), Sherfane Rutherford, Manish Pandey, Mujeeb-ur-Rahman, and Gus Atkinson among others.

Click Here: KKR vs SRH Live Score, Match 3

On the other hand, Sunrisers Hyderabad had a horrible season in 2023 as they found themselves languishing on the last spot on the points table with four wins from 14 matches having eight points to their name. The team failed to fire as a group under the leadership of Aiden Markram and hence the franchise onboarded Pat Cummins as their new skipper for the upcoming edition spending a massive 20.50 crore on the World Cup-winning captain. 

The ‘Orange Army’ is well and truly ready for the season having reinforced their squad by adding the likes of Travis Head, Wanindu Hasaranga and Jaydev Unadkat among others. With both teams desperate to change their fortunes in the upcoming edition, fans can expect a cracker-jack of a game which will set the tone for the rest of the tournament. 

Eden Gardens Pitch Report and Conditions

Out of the seven matches played at the venue in the previous season, four were won by teams batting first. The pitch surface was a belter of a track for batters with average first innings score being 192 while the highest target chased was 180. Spinners will find some assistance in the middle overs which could well turn out to be the game-changing phase in the match. The captain winning the toss will look to bat first and bring the opposition under pressure with a huge score.

Probable Playing XI

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)

With the captain Shreyas Iyer fit for the upcoming season, he will be an automatic selection in the playing XI while Mitchell Starc will provide the X factor with his searing pace with the new ball for KKR.

Predicted XI: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer (c), Nitish Rana, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Mitchell Starc, Chetan Sakariya, Varun Chakravarthy, Suyash Sharma.

Also Check: IPL 2024 Points Table

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)

Having bought Travis Head in the mini auction, SRH fixed their opening woes and the southpaw will be the automatic opener. The team management will have to make the tough choice between Abhishek Sharma and Rahul Tripathi. In the bowling department, Cummins and Umran Malik will hope to blow the opposition away with their pace along with swing mastery of Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

Predicted XI: Mayank Agarwal, Travis Head, Aiden Markram, Abhishek Sharma/Rahul Tripathi, Heinrich Klaasen, Abdul Samad, Washington Sundar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Pat Cummins (c), Umran Malik, Mayank Markande

Head-to-Head Record

KKR vs SRH, 3rd Match Broadcasting details: