AHMEDABAD: It has been a terrible start to the season for three-time IPL champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). Without a win in five games and just one point from a rain-marred encounter, the Knight Riders are languishing at the bottom of the table with a single point.Buoyed by the absence of their leading pacers, the fading form of two leading spinners – Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy – and a batting line-up that seems bereft of confidence, KKR will take on Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Narendra Modi Stadium just as the hosts are gathering momentum. GT bounced back from two losses in their opening two matches to arrive at their citadel on the back of two triumphs.This rivalry has historically favored GT, who have won three out of four games. However, the only match GT lost produced one of the most dramatic finishes in IPL history when the then little-known Rinku Singh smashed five sixes off Yash Dayal’s five balls to set up a famous come-from-behind triumph.
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Bombay Sport Exchange: Munaf Patel on Gautam Gambhir, Virat vs Bumrah and Indian bowling.However, Rinku’s batting this season has been a shadow of the past. Although Angkrish Raghuvanshi and skipper Ajinkya Rahane have been among the runs, it is the form (or lack thereof) of Finn Allen and Cameron Green that has let KKR down.Against GT, KKR batsmen run into a confident bowling line-up led by Purple Cap holder Prasidh Krishna. The pacer’s variations made things difficult in the middle overs. Mohammed Siraj, Kagiso Rabada, Ashok Sharma and leg-spinner Rashid Khan supported Prasidh with reasonably incisive bowling.
