Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Kolkata Knight Riders Prediction

RCB Team News

Royal Challengers Bangalore dropped Shivam Dube, Prayas Barman and Colin de Grandhomme in their last match against Rajasthan Royals and replaced them with Akshdeep Nath, Navdeep Saini and Marcus Stoinis respectively. Skipper Virat Kohli hinted at making a few changes after his side slumped to a fourth consecutive loss. Since Nathan Coulter-Nile won’t be available before April 13, RCB could bring Tim Southee in place of a misfiring Shimron Hetmyer for this upcoming encounter against Kolkata Knight Riders. Moeen Ali, who has failed to make a significant impact so far with both bat and ball, could make room for Washington Sundar in the playing eleven. RCB have tried out a different opening combination each time, and this time, they might decide to open with Parthiv Patel and Marcus Stoinis.

RCB Key Players

Royal Challengers Bangalore will be hoping that their big guns Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Parthiv Patel and Marcus Stoinis are able to fire for them in this crucial match against Kolkata Knight Riders. Parthiv is the only batsman in this side who has been amongst the runs. The opener smashed a fifty in the last game against Rajasthan Royals and he will be expected to keep up the good work. But RCB will also need sizeable contributions from their stalwarts Kohli and de Villiers. Stoinis made his RCB debut last time and looked impressive with the bat. His knack of breaking dwelling partnerships also makes him a threat with the ball as well. The key in this  bowling group, however, is Yuzvendra Chahal who has reclaimed his position at the top of the IPL 2019 bowling charts with eight wickets. The wrist-spinner was the standout performer at Jaipur with figures of 2-17. If Tim Southee gets picked for this game, he will definitely be the one to watch out for with the new ball. Washington Sundar could also get an opportunity here. He has shown in the past how skillful a bowler he can be in the powerplays and he can also add vital runs with the bat down the order.

RCB Recent Form

Royal Challengers Bangalore are languishing at the bottom of the IPL 2019 league standings having lost all of their first four matches. They are now the only team left in the competition who are yet to secure their first win of the season. They were handed a seven-wicket thrashing by Chennai Super Kings in the tournament opener before going down at home by six runs to Mumbai Indians. RCB then suffered a crushing 118-run loss at the hands of Sunrisers Hyderabad. They showed some competitiveness in their previous game against Rajasthan Royals, but poor bowling in the powerplay and plenty of dropped catches in the field was enough to ensure that they remained winless.