RR vs KKR Highlights, IPL 2022: Jos Buttler slams ton, Yuzvendra Chahal claims hattrick as Rajasthan beat Kolkata

Sanju Samson: “We would have also liked to bowl first, but need to be ready to do both. Our team is well set to do both. New venue for us, and we need to understand conditions quickly. Everyone has to contribute to whatever is the team's requirement, the talk is always about understanding the situation and being smarter. Everyone is looking to contribute, but failures are accepted. We're looking forward with a positive mindset.” 

Shreyas Iyer: “The wicket looks amazing and hard. One side seems short and one is long, so that's another reason why we want to chase. It's something we thrive on. We just practise a lot in the nets, we've seen the videos and have had chats in the meetings. Important to execute what we've discussed in the meetings.” 

Kolkata Knight Riders: Venkatesh Iyer, Aaron Finch, Shreyas Iyer(c), Nitish Rana, Andre Russell, Sheldon Jackson(w), Sunil Narine, Pat Cummins, Shivam Mavi, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy 

Kolkata make one change, Shivam Mavi comes in for Aman Khan. 

Rajasthan Royals: Jos Buttler, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson(w/c), Karun Nair, Shimron Hetmyer, Riyan Parag, Ravichandran Ashwin, Trent Boult, Prasidh Krishna, Obed McCoy, Yuzvendra Chahal 

Rajasthan make three changes - Karun Nair, Obed McCoy and Trent Boult come in; Rassie, Kuldeep and Neesham are out.

Kolkata Knight Riders win toss and opt to bowl first.

“It's a proper cricket ground, one square boundary is long at 79m while the other is short at 66m, huge pockets at either ends as well. This is a beautiful wicket, has lots of grass on it, very hard and could be a high-scoring game. A batting paradise, bowlers will hope that there'll be no dew.”

“I am used to bowling with the shorter boundaries, Ashwin is an off-spinner and obviously he needs the bigger boundaries. If someone hits me against the turn, then it'll be a good shot, but we do decide upon ends. Our confidence is pretty high going into the game.”

The ongoing season has revived Umesh Yadav's hopes of making a comeback in the white-ball format. The pacer also opened about his ambitions for the upcoming T20 World Cup, which is scheduled to be held in Australia later this year. Here's what he had to say: 

“I haven’t thought that far (World Cup). It will all depend on the selectors and the team management. India will play several white-ball matches before the mega event and I have to first make it to those squads and keep performing there. Of course, the World Cup remains at the back of my mind, but as a cricketer, I set small goals and try to achieve those in phases,” Umesh said during a conversation with the Times of India. [READ MORE]

The venue has been a paradise for batters, so we can expect a high-scoring encounter. However, with dew also coming into play in the evening, toss becomes an important factor and the captain who wins it will probably look to field first. 

If we look at the head-to-head record between both the sides, Kolkata have a slight edge over their opponents. They lead the tally 13-11. 

In recent times, particularly since 2018 KKR have been the one dominating the fixture, winning 7 of the total 9 clashes that were played during this period.

With a little over half an hour remaining for the toss, here's how the RR and KKR playing XI could look like:

Rajasthan Royals - Jos Buttler, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson (c & wk), Rassie van der Dussen, Shimron Hetmyer, Ravichandran Ashwin, Riyan Parag, Trent Boult, Kuldeep Sen, Prasidh Krishna, Yuzvendra Chahal 

Kolkata Knight Riders - Aaron Finch, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer (c), Nitish Rana, Andre Russell, Sheldon Jackson (wk), Pat Cummins, Sunil Narine, Umesh Yadav, Aman Hakim Khan, Varun Chakravarthy

Varun Chakravarthy, who had emerged as KKR's highest wicket-taker in the previous edition, has been struggling and has managed just four wickets from six matches. His economy also is above 8. Meanwhile, his partner Sunil Narine too has not been among the wickets but has maintained a clinical economy of exact 5.

Ex-India coach Ravi Shastri praised Shreyas Iyer's leadership abilities and called him a “natural captain”. The former coach pointed the clarity of thoughts in Iyer's mind, which has impressed him the most.

"Captaincy comes naturally to Shreyas (Iyer). Look at his aggressive captaincy, you don't feel like he's leading KKR for the first time. Looks like he's been captaining them for the last 3 to 4 seasons and it is visible through his clarity of thoughts. His mindset is clear about what brand of cricket he needs to play as a batter. At the same time, he's aware of what he as a captain needs to do to take his team to the playoffs and win the title. I've liked the way he's spoken during the pre and post-match conferences and that shows he's clear with his plans. I am convinced he'll go a long way," said Shastri while speaking on Star Sports show Cricket Live. 

Iyer, who has previously led Delhi Capitals, is leading the KKR franchise for the first time and has done a decent job so far. Can he guide the side to their third IPL glory?

KKR batter has also shown inconsistency, with captain Shreyas lyer just managing one half-century and a total of 151 runs in six matches. 

Nitesh Rana and Venkatesh Iyer have also not been among the runs. Rana has so far scored 123 from six outings, while the opener has got only 103 from the same number of matches. 

Considering their form it might be another difficult outing for the KKR batters with Chahal, Boult, and Ashwin in the opposition ranks. 

Apart from Buttler, Royals middle-order batter Shimron Hetmyer has been the only other player from the camp to make an impact with the bat. He has so far amassed 197 runs from five matches, which also include a half-century.

Rajasthan Royals batters apart from Jos Buttler has failed to fire big, which include the likes of skipper Sanju Samson and star opener batter Devdutt Padikkal. The skipper has managed 117 runs from 5 matches, while Padikkal has managed 114 from the same number of games. 

Can the duo fire big tonight?

The thing concerning Rajasthan Royals could be Ravichandran Ashwin's form. He has just managed one wicket from five matches and has conceded 143 runs. The only positive has been his economy, which remains at 7.15.

Kolkata Knight Riders surely have a better pace setup as compared to the Royals but they have not fired yet. Andre Russell has been good with the bat and has also provided vital scalps. Pat Cummins, on the other hand, has dished out average performances. Umesh Yadav too holds a lot of key going into the clash. He has 10 wickets from 6 matches.

Rajasthan, on the other hand, have the likes of Trent Boult, Prasidh Krishna among others. Veteran New Zealand pacer Trent Boult has been doing well and has managed 7 wickets from 4 matches. Krishna has been decent with his economy being slightly over 8. Kuldeep Sen, who has also been preferred over Navdeep Saini, has also leaked runs at over 10 runs per over.

Rajasthan Royals, on the other hand, will be ticked in as favourites ahead of the clash. The franchise have both the tournament's highest run-getter and wicket-taker in their ranks in Jos Buttler and Yuzvendra Chahal.

The spinner is enjoying great form and has picked 12 wickets in five matches at an economy of 6.80. 

Buttler too has been impressive with the bat, having amassed 272 runs at an average of 68.

Kolkata Knight Riders stand at the sixth position on the points table with three wins and the same number of losses. The franchiser were thrashed by Delhi Capitals by 44 runs and endured a seven-wicket loss against Sunrisers Hyderabad in their previous two encounters.

Hello and welcome to the LIVE coverage of the Indian Premier League match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals at Brabourne Stadium. The match will start at 7:30 PM and the toss will take place 30 minutes before the start. Stay tuned for all the updates!