In the 41st match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022, Delhi Capitals (DC) will be locking horns with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). It will be a mouth-watering contest at the Wankhede Stadium. Under the captaincy of Rishabh Pant, DC witnessed a loss against the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in their previous encounter and their campaign has been pretty topsy turvy.
They are currently at seventh position in the points table with three wins in seven games. On the other hand, the Kolkata Knight Riders have failed to go over the board in the last four matches and they are desperate for a win in the upcoming games. The Shreyas Iyer-led side has struggled to put out their best playing XI and the top order hasn’t been able to produce good opening partnerships which have been a concern for quite some time now.
ALSO READ: Match 41 (DC vs KKR) – Probable XI And Fantasy XI
Ajinkya Rahane might get another go with Venkatesh Iyer struggling to get runs. The two old rivals have locked horns with each other 31 times in IPL so far and it is KKR that has enjoyed the fair share of success against DC with 16 wins. However, in the last 5 encounters DC has dominated with 3-2 margin.
This will be a contest between Kolkata’s bowlers and Delhi’s powerhouse batting unit and on that note, We take a look at the three key player battles to watch out for.
#1 Shreyas Iyer vs Kuldeep Yadav
Shreyas Iyer’s batting form has been a concern for the KKR this season. He has witnessed a few ups and downs and more often than not he has thrown his wicket away. Up against him will be Kuldeep Yadav, who has an economy rate that hovers above eight and has 13 wickets to show for. Their previous encounters show that Iyer has dominated the leg-spinner, scoring 32 runs but not being dismissed. Their mid-overs clash might just seal the game for either side.
#2 Umesh Yadav vs David Warner
A reinvented Umesh Yadav has troubled every batter he has bowled to so far in IPL 2022 and KKR will be hoping for him to continue his form. He’s bagged 11 wickets to become the leading wicket-taker for his team this season. Warner has been one of the consistent performers of DC since his return. If the southpaw can get cracking against Yadav, who has been electric, expect a disrupted rhythm that might change the outcome of the game.
#3 Rishabh Pant vs Varun Chakravarthy
A lot of captains fail to stop a juggernaut like Rishabh Pant, especially when he starts walloping. He has played a couple of pivotal knocks so far in IPL 2022 and KKR will look to Varun Chakravarthy, who has just four wickets to show so far this season. Will it be spin-winning over some slog sweeps? Only time will tell.
