Rajasthan Royals faced a seven-wicket defeat against the Kolkata Knight Riders earlier in the season.
Rajasthan Royals are carrying plenty of momentum with them after winning their last three matches in a row.
Kolkata Knight Riders are playing on their home ground and so they will be more familiar with the conditions.
KKR vs RR Win Probability
The "Chance of Winning" Widget shows winning percentage depending upon live betting odds of teams participating in the match. The winning percentage is changed immediately when odds are updated.
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Who Will Win KKR vs RR 49th Match, IPL 2018?
Kolkata Knight Riders will take on the Rajasthan Royals in the 49th fixture of the Indian Premier League 2018. This crucial encounter will be played on May 15 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Live action is scheduled to begin at 8 PM local time.
KKR vs RR: Where to Watch/Live Streaming
TV channels: Star Sports, Sky Sports, Fox Sports, OSN Sports Cricket HD
The Eden Gardens has hosted six matches so far this IPL out of which four have been won by the side that has bowled first. Plus, there could be some dew later on in the evening which will make it tough for the bowlers to grip the ball. Toss, therefore, is going to play an important role here and whichever team wins it will probably elect to field first.
Read on for team analysis, betting odds, betting tips and prediction for KKR vs RR 49th match, Indian Premier League 2018....
KKR Team News & Playing 11
Team News
The KKR team management have not given any update on Shivam Mavi's injury. The pace bowler hurt his finger during the home game against the Chennai Super Kings and will likely replace Prasidh Krishna in the playing eleven if he fully recovers ahead of this clash against the Rajasthan Royals. Tom Curran was dropped in the last game against the Kings XI Punjab for Javon Searles and skipper Dinesh Karthik will probably retain him for this game.
Key Players
There is plenty of firepower in KKR's batting but the ones who hold the key are Chris Lynn, Dinesh Karthik and Sunil Narine. Skipper Karthik has scored the most runs for the franchise while Lynn is always a big threat to the bowling side. Even Narine with his aggressive approach can be very dangerous just like he was in the last game against the KXIP. The team will also have high expectations from Robin Uthappa who has blown hot and cold this IPL. When it comes to bowling, the Knight Riders will bank on their leading wicket-taket Narine and Andre Russell to do the job. The Royals found it difficult to score off Kuldeep Yadav in the reverse encounter and the wrist-spinner could once again have a good day with the ball against them.
Recent Form
Kolkata Knight Riders are currently placed fourth on the IPL 2018 points table with six wins and as many losses from twelve league fixtures. To ensure their qualification for the playoffs, they will need to win their remaining two games - one at home and the other away. KKR's 31-run victory over the Kings XI Punjab in their last match will serve as a big confidence booster ahead of this match. They have been very impressive with the bat and even racked up 245 last time - the highest total of the season.
KKR Predicted Playing 11
Chris Lynn, Sunil Narine, Robin Uthappa, Andre Russell, Dinesh Karthik (c/wk), Nitish Rana, Shubman Gill, Javon Searles, Piyush Chawla, Prasidh Krishna/Shivam Mavi, Kuldeep Yadav
KKR vs RR Match Prediction
RR Team News & Playing 11
Team News
Ish Sodhi has not played the last two games for the Rajasthan Royals due to Illness. If the leg-spinner is declared fit ahead of this game against the Kolkata Knight Riders, the team will bring him back and may consider dropping an out of form D'Arcy Short. The rest of the line-up is expected to remain the same.
Key Players
Jos Buttler is in tremendous form at the moment. The opening batsman cracked his fifth consecutive half-century in the last match against the Mumbai Indians to seal the game for his side and he could prove to be a big headache for the KKR bowlers if they fail to dismiss him early on. Sanju Samson and Ajinkya Rahane have also been amongst the runs this IPL while Ben Stokes with his hard-hitting skills is the team's key man in the middle order. Rajasthan's bowling relies heavily on Jofra Archer. The West Indian paceman has taken the most wickets for the Royals - 13 in 7 matches - and he will be the skipper's go-to man for picking up the early wickets. Krishnappa Gowtham has been quite economical overall and the off-spinner will have a major role to play here on this surface.
Recent Form
With six wins and as many defeats from twelve matches, Rajasthan Royals are fifth in the IPL 2018 league standings and are still in the race for the playoffs. Like KKR, they too need to win both their remaining fixtures if they are to confirm their spot in the top four. After three losses in a row, the Royals have made a strong comeback into the tournament by winning their next three matches straight. They made short work of Mumbai Indians' total of 168 the other night as they rode on Buttler's breathtaking 94 to canter home with seven wickets in hand and two overs to spare.
RR Predicted Playing 11
Jos Buttler (wk), D'Arcy Short/Ish Sodhi, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Sanju Samson, Ben Stokes, Stuart Binny, Jofra Archer, Krishnappa Gowtham, Shreyas Gopal, Jaydev Unadkat, Dhawal Kulkarni
KKR vs RR Team Form in Last Five Matches
KKR : WLLWW
RR : WWWLL
KKR vs RR Head to Head
KKR vs RR Head to Head
Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals have played 16 matches against each other in the Indian Premier League with both winning 7 matches each. The remaining two encounters have both resulted in tie.
The Royals have won two of their last three face-offs against the Knight Riders; a 10-run victory at Ahmedabad in 2014 followed by a nine-run win at Mumbai in the 2015 season.
However, it was the Kolkata Knight Riders who emerged victorious by seven wickets when they last faced the Rajasthan Royals in the 15th match of the ongoing season at Jaipur.
Kolkata Knight Riders are playing at home and they even got the better of Rajasthan Royals earlier in the season. So they are going into this match as the bookmakers' favorites with a 1.66 offer on Bet365 and 1.70 on Betfair. The Royals, despite having won their last three games on the bounce, are the underdogs at a higher price of 2.20 on Bet365 and 2.38 on Betfair.
Kolkata vs Rajasthan Prediction
Rajasthan Royals are hitting form at the right time. They are coming into this match having beaten Kings XI Punjab, Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians in their last three games which means that momentum is going to be on their side. However, they will be well aware of the fact that they have managed to beat the Kolkata Knight Riders just once in the five matches played against them at the Eden Gardens. They won the first of those encounters in the inaugural edition but since then they have not been able to win a single game at this venue. So this should make the hosts feel a lot more optimistic.
While the Royals do have a slightly better bowling attack than the Knight Riders, their batting seems to be heavily reliant on Jos Buttler which is definitely an area of concern for them. KKR on the other hand have plenty of power-hitters in their side and since they also have the home advantage in their favour, we predict them to win this game and complete the double over the Royals.
Final Verdict: Back Kolkata Knight Riders to beat Rajasthan Royals at 1.66 on Bet365 and 1.70 on Betfair.
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May 15, 2018
20:00 IST / 14:30 GMT
Eden Gardens - Kolkata, India
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