Venue: Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai
Time: 7:30 PM IST
Average score at venue (1st inns): 192
Win percentage while batting first: 42.86%
Pitch conditions:
- Batsmen will enjoy the time out at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai as the pitch here has supported their kind all throughout this tournament.
- The previous contest played here between Lucknow and Mumbai, both the teams scored in excess of 180 in the afternoon game which proves that the pitch here is full of runs and the bowlers will have to be smart and disciplined in order to get success.
- Pacers will be expected to have a good run in the middle with wicket-share percentage of 69.48% giving them the edge over spinners, who have taken the remaining 31.82% of the wickets.
Weather prediction:
The temperature will drop down to 31°C after a hot and humid afternoon in Mumbai, with the mercury remaining steady for the majority of the contest. The humidity levels will increase from 60 to 75% during the match hours on Monday night.
HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD (overall):
Matches played: 25
Rajasthan won: 11
Kolkata won: 13
No result: 1
Top 3 players from Rajasthan: Shimron Hetmyer, Jos Buttler, Yuzvendra Chahal
Top 3 players from Kolkata: Andre Russell, Shreyas Iyer, Nitish Rana
Top picks for H2H/WTA contest (top 5 players each):
Top 5 players from Rajasthan: Shimron Hetmyer, Jos Buttler, Yuzvendra Chahal, Devdutt Padikkal, Trent Boult
Top 5 players from Kolkata: Andre Russell, Shreyas Iyer, Nitish Rana, Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer
Q & A:
Fantasy tips and tricks: Should I pick more bowlers, batsmen or all-rounders?
The pitch at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai has been favourable to batsmen with big scores being recorded recently in the Indian T20 cricket league 2022 tournament. The surface still has a flip cover of green grass but it has lost any favours batsmen and also provided a little bit of assistance to fast bowlers. For making a fantasy cricket playing 11, it will be important to have a long batting line-up along with 3 to 4 fast bowling options for this contest between Rajasthan and Kolkata.
Fantasy tips: From which team should I pick more players in my XI? Which team is stronger?
Kolkata have slept with two defeats in their last as many matches after showing positive signs at the start of the tournament. The batting order looks perfect for the two-time title winners but none of their batsmen have some signs of being consistent, with Shreyas Iyer and Nitish Rana chipping in with runs in the last couple of matches after the same was done by a few others in the initial matches. Andre Russell has been a key player for Kolkata all these years but in comparison with Rajasthan, who have a far more settled and performing batting lineup along with a needle bowling attack look like the stronger side and should have more players featuring in the playing 11.
MORE INFORMATION: Kolkata have suffered heavy defeats in the last two matches at the hands of Delhi and Hyderabad, and it is imperative for them to stop the downward spiral and record a victory to lift themselves from the sixth position in the points table, where they are placed currently with three victories and as many defeats giving them three points and a net run rate of 0.223. Overall in the competition, Kolkata have lost three out of their last five matches whereas Rajasthan have lost two. On the other hand, Rajasthan, who were topping the points table at one stage in the Indian T20 cricket League, have been pushed as far below as fourth position with six points in five matches with three victories and two defeats giving them a better run rate of 0.389.
PLAYERS’ FORM: Kolkata and grappling with the issue of consistency since none of their batsmen have been regular with either runs or wickets. Venkatesh Iyer does it with a half-century but since then he has had a couple of years whereas wickets have dried up for the better and fast bowler Umesh Yadav. While Sunil Narine has been able to contain the batsmen, Varun Chakraborty is failing to do both — take wickets and contain. Shreyas Iyer scored a fine fighting half-century against Delhi but perished for 28 after he was beaten by the raw pace of Hyderabad Umran Malik. Nitish Rana scored a fine half-century against Hyderabad in the previous match whereas Andre Russell scored a vital 49 not out. For Rajasthan, Devdutt Padikkal will be in focus after the left-handed batsman is going through a disappointing little patch with the bat. Sanju Samson has also not been among runs but all eyes will be on the pair of Jos Buttler and Shimron Hetmyer to dazzle with the bat once again.
Changes in squad (if any): NO
LIKELY XIs:
RAJASTHAN: Jos Buttler, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson (c&wk), Rassie Van Der Dussen, Shimron Hetmyer, Riyan Parag, Ravichandran Ashwin, James Neesham, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Sen, Yuzvendra Chahal.
KOLKATA: Venkatesh Iyer, Aaron Finch, Shreyas Iyer (c), Nitish Rana, Sheldon Jackson (wk), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Pat Cummins, Aman Hakim Khan, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy.
FANTASY XI: Jos Buttler (c&wk), Venkatesh Iyer, Sanju Samson, Shreyas Iyer (vc), Shimron Hetmyer, Nitish Rana, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Pat Cummins, Yuzvendra Chahal, Prasidh Krishna.
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Rajasthan, Kolkata look to bounce back to winning ways
Both Rajasthan and Kolkata will be looking to bounce back to winning ways when they face off at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai on Monday night for the Match No 30 of the ongoing Indian T20 cricket league 2022 tournament.
After promising start to their respective campaigns, the going has become a little tough for both Rajasthan and Kolkata who have not been able to put up decisive performances across departments. The concern will be higher in the Kolkata camp since they have lost two matches on the trot by big margins, whereas Rajasthan or coming off a defeat at the hands of in their previous match.
For Kolkata, consistency is a massive issue since they have tried several combinations as far as playing levels are concerned but they have not been able to get on a winning run. At the same time, Rajasthan have their playing XI sorted out but still they need more from their players who have been assigned crucial responsibilities.
Sanju Samson is yet to score a fifty for Rajasthan in the tournament whereas Jos Buttler continues to remain their best batsmen in terms of the sheer number of runs that he has got so far, which includes a century against Mumbai.
Devdutt Padikkal has not been able to up a big score despite getting starts in three out of the last five outings that he had so far for Rajasthan. The left-handed Karnataka batsman plays an important role at the top order along with Jos Buttler, but as far as execution of the rules is concerned, the West Indian Shimron Hetmyer gets full marks.
With scores of 32, 35, 42 not out, 59 not out and 29, the left-handed Shimron Hetmyer has displayed rich form with the bat for Rajasthan as he is responsible for getting late runs and provide strong fightback when the team is chasing.