Find out team news, TV and streaming information, odds, weather forecasts and much, much more ahead of the next game of the 2021 Indian Premier League season
Kolkata Knight Riders meet Rajasthan Royals in the 2021 Indian Premier League.
The game is scheduled for 6pm UAE (3pm BST, 7.30pm IST) on Thursday, October 7, 2021.
The two sides will meet at the Sharjah International Stadium in Sharjah.
This is a must-win match for both sides. Kolkata Knight Riders currently occupy the final playoff position with one match remaining and have a two point cushion over Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals. However, they are only ahead of Mumbai Indians on net run rate.
Two points against Rajasthan will all but assure KKR of a top-four finish due to their impressive net run rate. If they lose and Mumbai Indians and Punjab Kings also lose, KKR could still pip Rajasthan Royals. Rajasthan, meanwhile, need to win convincingly to overhaul KKR's net run rate and hope Mumbai and Punjab lose on Friday.
In terms of form, Kolkata Knight Riders head into Thursday's clash with two wins in their past three outings, most recently defeating Sunrisers Hyderabad by six wickets. Rajasthan Royals, by contrast, have won two of their six matches in the UAE and were restricted to just 90 for 9 against Mumbai Indians on Tuesday.
In the reverse fixture, Rajasthan Royals won by six wickets.
Dafabet have installed Kolkata Knight Riders as the favourites to win this match, offering odds of 4/7. Rajasthan Royals are available at 11/8.
Venkatesh Iyer is the favourite to top-score for Kolkata, with odds of 13/5, while Evin Lewis is at 14/5 to top-score for Rajasthan Royals.
Rahul Tripathi has been in good form for KKR since arriving in the UAE, scoring three 30+ knocks in his past five innings. Fellow top order batters Shubman Gill and Iyer have also shown good touch, scoring a half-century against Sunrisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings, respectively. However, finisher Dinesh Karthik could be KKR's game-changer with the bat. The veteran wicketkeeper has scored 190 runs at a strike rate of 138.68 this season and historically enjoys batting at the death against Rajasthan, possessing a career strike rate of 232.43.
With the ball, mystery spinner Sunil Narine, ranked 19th on the T20 Player Index, impressed against Sunrisers, conceding just 12 runs from his four overs. In total, the West Indian has taken 10 wickets and bowled with an economy of 6.42 - the lowest of anyone on his team to bowl more than 10 overs.
For Rajasthan Royals, Evin Lewis was the only batter to emerge from mauling against Mumbai with any credit, scoring 24 runs off 19 balls. The West Indian now has 151 runs at a strike rate of 162.36 in five appearances, and if he can find a bit of support, he could get the Royals off to a commanding start.
Tim Seifert was replaced by Shakib Al Hasan against Sunrisers Hyderabad and the Bangladesh international impressed with the ball, taking 1 for 20. Morgan will likely retain Hasan and field an unchanged XI following Sunday's victory.
Rajasthan Royals have a full squad at their disposal.
The two teams have played each other 24 times.
Kolkata Knight Riders win: 12
Rajasthan Royals win: 11
No result: 1
Daytime temperatures are expected to peak around 37 degrees Celsius in Sharjah before cooling slightly in the evening.
Follow the Met Office forecast here.
Yes, a limited number of fans are allowed to attend games during the IPL's UAE leg.
Rajasthan Royals are badly out of form and played poorly against Mumbai Indians. Kolkata Knight Riders win.
IPL TEAM GUIDES
Sky Sports have the rights in the United Kingdom.
You can aso stream the tournament using the Disney+ Hotstar digital platform, though the matches are only available for VIP or Premium subscribers.
Star Sports have the television rights in India.
Streaming service YuppTV have acquired digital streaming rights in a host of markets, including Australia, continental Europe, Malaysia, Southeast Asia with the exception of Singapore, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, the Maldives, Central Asia, and Central and South America.
In the USA, the games will be broadcast on Willow TV and the Willow TV website. Fox Sports have the broadcasting rights in Australia, while Supersport will televise the games in South Africa. In the Caribbean, Flow TV have the rights.
The following broadcasters owning the rights for their respective regions:
Bangladesh: Channel 9
Afghanistan: Lemar TV
Malaysia: Measat
MENA/UAE: BeIN Sport
Hong Kong: Now TV
Singapore: SingTel
New Zealand: Sky Sport
Papua New Guinea: EMTV
Kolkata Knight Riders squad: Dinesh Karthik, Andre Russell, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Kuldeep Yadav, Lockie Ferguson, Nitish Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Sandeep Warrier, Shivam Mavi, Shubman Gill, Sunil Narine, Eoin Morgan, Rahul Tripathi, Varun Chakravarthy, Pawan Negi, Tim Seifert, Shakib al Hasan, Sheldon Jackson, Vaibhav Arora, Karun Nair, Harbhajan Singh, Ben Cutting, Venkatesh Iyer, Tim Southee
Rajasthan Royals squad: Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag, Shreyas Gopal, Rahul Tewatia, Mahipal Lomror, Kartik Tyagi, Andrew Tye, Jaydev Unadkat, Mayank Markande, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Anuj Rawat, David Miller, Manan Vohra, Shivam Dube, Chris Morris, Mustafizur Rahim, Chetan Sakariya, K.C. Cariappa, Liam Livingstone, Kuldip Yadav, Akash Singh, Glenn Phillips, Tabraiz Shamsi, Oshane Thomas, Evin Lewis
Kolkata Knight Riders: Shubman Gill, Venkatesh Iyer, Rahul Tripathi, Nitish Rana, Dinesh Karthik, Eoin Morgan, Shakib Al Hasan, Sunil Narine, Shivam Mavi, Varun Chakravarthy
Rajasthan Royals: Evin Lewis, Yashavi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Glenn Phillips, David Miller, Rahul Tewetia, Akash Singh, Chetan Sakariya, Kuldip Yadav, Mustafizur Rahman
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