Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh added that the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are firm favourites to win the IPL 2024 title. He also added that the two-time champions have a well-balanced squad that would be tough to beat this season. However, KKR’s penultimate league game against the Gujarat Titans (GT) in Ahmedabad on Monday (May 13) was washed out, although they have booked a berth in Qualifier 1 to be played at the same venue on May 21 as well.
During a discussion on Star Sports, Harbhajan Singh said, “They have very good chances because the team is very good. It’s an extremely balanced team. I don’t think they have anything lacking in their team. The opening slots, middle order, fast and spin bowling are all set. They have all the options a good team should have and that is why they are the table toppers. I feel they are the strongest contenders to lift the trophy because they have a lot of match-winners. The opposing team needs to have a very good day to beat them. I feel it would be slightly difficult to beat them this season because they are playing terrific cricket.”
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With 19 points from 13 games, KKR are placed at the top of the points table and they will play against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in their
final league game in Guwahati on May 19. Mohammad Kaif, however, praised the Kolkata Knight Riders for scripting a great turnaround in IPL 2024. He also stated that KKR have all the bases covered in their squad.
“When they will reach here for Qualifier 1, (Phil) Salt won’t be there. A new player would have to play there. So the atmosphere will be slightly different but they will be happy because of the way they have played. All players are in form. We rarely see such a turnaround. The last two years were very bad for KKR. They finished at the seventh position in two successive years. Now they are finishing at the top. Although one or two games are left, they have qualified. The signs are good. They have good players and a great atmosphere,” the former India batter further added.
“They have (Mitchell) Starc and two uncapped fast bowlers in Vaibhav Arora and Harshit Rana. They have swing and pace. They have (Sunil) Narine and Varun (Chakaravarthy). They are an extremely balanced team. We haven’t taken Rinku Singh’s name much. They have Andre Russell. I have gotten tired while naming all of them,” he concluded.
