Gujarat Lions vs Kolkata Knight Riders, IPL 2016, Match 51 at Kanpur, Preview: KKR aim to claim top spot back

New franchise and hosts Gujarat Lions (GL), take on former champions and visitors Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in Match 51 of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2016, at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur on Thursday. KKR have been in planetary form this season, as they have managed to maintain their position in the top phase of the league table, throughout the tournament so far. As for GL, they too have been in fair form ever since the start of the tournament, and too have more or less maintained their position in the top four phase of the table, as both the teams look to extend their lead at the table top with a win here. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: Gujarat Lions vs Kolkata Knight Riders, IPL 2016, Match 51 at Kanpur

GL lost their previous tie to Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) by a massive margin of 144 runs as RCB posted a mammoth total of 248, while GL were bundled for mere 104 in pursuit of the chase. The humongous defeat took a toll on their run rate. KKR, on the other hand, were handed a loss in their previous tie against the very same team, as RCB steered to a comfortable 9-wicket win over the hosts, despite the hosts putting up a decent and challenging total of 183 on the board.

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Considering the performance in the previous game, it was not a day for the GL bowlers against RCB, as they hardly claimed any wickets, except for Praveen Kumar, who claimed 2 for 45, while Dhawal Kulkarni claimed 1 for 33. As for their batting, there was hardly any performance of note barring Aaron Finch’s healthy 37. What RCB, KKR, DD and other teams have to do to reach playoffs

As for KKR, they had a decent outing with the bat, as skipper Gautam Gambhir and Manish Pandey played scored 51 and 50 respectively, while Andre Russell played a breezy cameo. Unfortunately, just as in GL’s case, the bowling took a toll as Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers went berserk.

Therefore, considering their performance in the previous games, both the teams are likely to go for a few changes. As for GL, Dwayne Smith, who has been inconsistent of late, could be replace by James Faulkner, while Shivil Kaushik, the most expensive bowler in the previous tie (he gave away 50), can be replaced by Shadab Jakati or Sarabjit Ladda.

KKR they will hardly like to fiddle with their batting department, but can make changes in the bowling department. Sunil Narine was expensive and may lose out on a battle with Brad Hogg, while Piyush Chawla can miss out to Manan Sharma or Kuldeep Yadav.

With the game being played at Kanpur, this is a neutral venue for both the teams, though GL is the home team in this game on paper. Nevertheless, expect an even support for both the teams. However, KKR can have the edge in support if principal owner Shahrukh Khan is present. As for the pitch, it is traditionally known to favour the batsmen, so expect runs in the game, which again puts KKR on the edge to clinch this tie.

Squads:

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR): Gautam Gambhir (c), Kuldeep Yadav, Manish Pandey, Piyush Chawla, Robin Uthappa (wk), Sheldon Jackson (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Umesh Yadav, Yusuf Pathan, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Brad Hogg, Chris Lynn, Morne Morkel, Shakib Al Hasan, Jaydev Unadkat, Ankit Rajpoot, Shaun Tait, Jason Holder, Colin Munro, Rajgopal Sathish, Manan Sharma.

Gujarat Lions (GL): Suresh Raina (c), Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo, James Faulkner, Brendon McCullum, Praveen Kumar, Dale Steyn, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Dwayne Smith, Dhawal Kulkarni, Aaron Finch, Eklavya Dwivedi, Andrew Tye, Ishan Kishan, Jaydev Shah, Shadab Jakati, Pravin Tambe, Pradeep Sangwan, Amit Mishra, Shivil Kaushik, Aksh Deep Nath, Sarabjeet Ladda, Umang Sharma, Paras Dogra.

Time: 20:00 IST | 14:30 GMT

(Ayush Gupta is a reporter at CricketCountry. A passionate supporter of Manchester United, he idolises Roger Federer and is also a World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) maniac. He can be followed on Twitter @Ayush24x7)