For Match 9 of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, the two tournament heavyweights Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) are scheduled to clash. The eagerly anticipated match will take place on April 6 at Kolkata’s renowned Eden Gardens.
KKR will host an IPL match for the first time in nearly four years. However, they will enter the match having lost their previous match against the Punjab Kings.
In a night game in Mohali, KKR bowlers released 191 runs in the main innings. They lost half of their side on 80 because their chase never got going. However, Venkatesh Iyer took the game far, with KKR’s score reading 146/7 after 16 overs.
Sadly for them, the rain started to pour, and PBKS won by seven runs (using the DLS Method).
In contrast, RCB will be buoyed by their impressive victory over Mumbai Indians (MI) in their first match. They defeated the five-time IPL champions by eight wickets thanks to a strong team effort.
The RCB scorecard from their previous IPL 2023 match
At the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, RCB put on a dominant performance during their game against Mumbai. Opening batsmen Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis put on outstanding performances as the team chased 172 in the second innings. They took a beating from the MI bowlers right from the start, mocking the run-chase.
Kohli batted through the innings and remained unbeaten at 82 off just 49 balls, despite Faf’s quick-fire 73 off 43 balls, which included five boundaries and six maximums. During his knock, the former captain dealt five lustful blows and six boundaries.
Glenn Maxwell hit a couple of sixes out of the three balls he faced while Dinesh Karthik, who batted at No. 3, made an unwelcome duck. With a four and a six, Kohli ended the game with 22 balls in his possession.
By putting a lot of pressure on the MI batters earlier, the RCB bowlers supported their captain’s decision to bowl first. Despite Tilak Verma’s belligerent 84* run knock, they held Mumbai to 171 runs.
Mohammed Siraj, Reece Topley, Akash Deep, Harshal Patel, and Michael Bracewell each took one wicket, making almost all of the RCB bowlers involved in the incident. Tim David and Nehal Wadhera were both dismissed by Karn Sharma, who took two wickets.
The Bangalore-based establishment will need to dole out another definitive execution when they venture out to challenge KKR and make it two successes in two this season.