IPL 2022, KKR vs PBKS HIGHLIGHTS: Russell powers Kolkata to six-wicket win against Punjab at Wankhede

KKR's only concern will be pertaining to the fitness of Russell. Here is the probable playing XI for KKR...

Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana, Shreyas Iyer (c), Sam Billings, Sheldon Jackson (wk), Andre Russell/ Nabi/Karunaratne, Sunil Narine, Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy

After a winning start to the season, the only change Punjab fans can expect is the debut of Rabada and hence will replace Harpreet Brar. Here is the probable playing XI for PBKS...

Mayank Agarwal (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Bhanuka Rajapaksa (wk), Shahrukh Khan, Odean Smith, Raj Bawa, Arshdeep Singh, Kagiso Rabada, Sandeep Sharma, Rahul Chahar.

Chasing team won both the matches at the Wankhede this season and since 2018, they have lost only 10 times in 28 games at the venue in IPL. So team winning the toss, will be wanting to bowl first.

McCullum had revealed that the Windies all-rounder was sore after he made a fielding effort during the last game, where he bowled only three overs. If unfit, KKR are likely to go with Mohammad Nabi or Chamika Karunaratne

“I want us to continue to keep that in the team because that's what served this side so well last year. And I think you know the way we've set our team up with the auction, the players that we picked that suits them as well. Sometimes you get to go a little bit too hard. But now we know where the line is and if we can add a little bit of craft with the wickets we're coming up against and look to use the bounce as our friend rather than our foe then I think it gives us a good chance.”

KKR have won five of their eight games against Punjab Kings in IPL since 2018. However, they have won just two of their 12 games at the Wankhede Stadium, one of which came against CSK in IPL 2022 season opener. PBKS, on the other end, have won six of their 14 games at the venue.

Back after Australia's victorious 1-0 win in Pakistan, Cummins has joined the KKR squad and has begun his quarantine period. 

In two games, Umesh Yadav, who was picked by KKR at the mega auction in February, picked four wickets, all of which were with the new ball. In six overs in the powerplay, he conceded at 4 an over with a strike rate of 9. Since 2018, Umesh has picked 22 wickets with the new ball. Only Deepak Chahar (42) and Trent Boult (28) has picked more wickets in the powerplay during that phase.

With Rabada set to return, the key contest of the match will be the South African speedster versus Andre Russell. Remember that Super Over battle a few season back? Against Rabada, Russell has scored 60 runs in 27 balls for one dismissal. 47 of those runs were scored in the death overs at a strike rate of 293.8 for no dismissal.

He is out of quarantine and he is all geared up to play his first game in IPL 2022. After being released from Delhi Capitals, Rabada was roped in for INR 9.25 crore by Punjab. He is the third highest wicket taker in IPL in the death overs since 2019, picking 45 wickets at an economy rate of 9.37.

Mayank Agarwal(c), Shikhar Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Bhanuka Rajapaksa(w), Shahrukh Khan, Odean Smith, Raj Bawa, Arshdeep Singh, Harpreet Brar, Sandeep Sharma, Rahul Chahar, Prabhsimran Singh, Rishi Dhawan, Benny Howell, Ishan Porel, Vaibhav Arora, Ansh Patel, Atharva Taide, Prerak Mankad, Jitesh Sharma, Kagiso Rabada, Writtick Chatterjee, Baltej Singh

Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana, Shreyas Iyer(c), Sam Billings, Sheldon Jackson(w), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Shivam Mavi, Mohammad Nabi, Chamika Karunaratne, Baba Indrajith, Rinku Singh, Anukul Roy, Pratham Singh, Abhijeet Tomar, Rasikh Salam, Aman Hakim Khan, Ashok Sharma, Ramesh Kumar

The toss is already playing a significant role in the tournament and both captains will look to bowl first at the venue. This is the third IPL 2022 game at the iconic Wankhede and batting hasn't looked easy on the surface so far.

Chennai managed to score just 131 in the season-opener while Lucknow stuttered to 29 for four against Mohammed Shami's opening spell in their first-ever IPL match.

As the action shifts to Wankhede, Kolkata will rely heavily on Ajinkya Rahane, who has grown up playing at the venue. The two-time champions would expect Rahane and Venkatesh Iyer to provide a strong start.

KKR enter the game at the back of a three-wicket loss against RCB. Though they manged to make it a close contest, a below-par total of 128 didn't seem enough on a Mumbai surface.

Hello and welcome to the live coverage of match no.8 of IPL 2022 where two-time league winners Kolkata Knight Riders will take on Mayank Agarwal-led Punjab Kings at the Wankhede Stadium. Stay tuned for more updates!