2012 CLT20: Kolkata Knight Riders V Perth Scorchers – Match Preview
Gautam Gambhir led Kolkata Knight Riders are all set to take on Perth Scorchers in their must win Champions League T20 Group A match, here at Kingsmead in Durban, on Wednesday (today), October 17, 2012.
The reigning IPL champions have looked completely out of sorts on the bouncy South African pitches, which offer assistance to the seamers. The Knight Riders have been soundly beaten in their opening two games of the tournament, against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Auckland-c766 Aces, and will be facing a do-or-die situation going into tonight’s Group A encounter against the Australian side, who are also yet to register a win.
Barring http://www.senore.com/Cricket/G-Gambhir-c1447 and veteran South African import Jacques Kallis – has been the major reason behind KKR’s inability to put a competitive total on the board in the previous two encounters. Whilst Gambhir scored 0 and 5, Kallis is yet to open his account.
Bowling has also been a major cause of concern for the IPL champions, as apart from West Indian spinner Sunil Narine no other bowler has been effective. Despite favourable conditions, the struggle of pacers, especially http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Brett-Lee-c48419 tonight. Rest of the squad is likely to remain unchanged.
Gambhir and Men played their opening two fixtures in Johannesburg and Cape Town, and will be hoping that a change of venue (Durban) brings a change in fortunes as well. However, going by the KKR batsmen’s struggle against pace and bounce so far in the tournament, the Kingsmead strip is expected to only add to their worries.
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Mitchell-Marsh-c1974 is also a talented player, and could be the difference between the two sides tonight.
The biggest advantage for the Perth players will be that the playing conditions at the Kingsmead are quite similar to those at the WACA (http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Western-Australia-c865 Cricket Association) ground.
Though the outfield will be quick, the playing conditions at Kingsmead will not be completely pro-batsmen. Pace bowlers are expected to get some assistance from the deck as well as from the partly cloudy weather. So one can expect a high scoring game in Durban tonight, but with a lot of wickets falling too.
Kolkata Knight Riders (Probable XIs): 1 Gautam Gambhir (c), 2 Manvinder Bisla (wk), 3 http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sunil-Philip-Narine-c91869
Perth Scorchers (Probable XIs): 1 http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Ben-Edmondson-c1134
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