Indian T20 League 2023

KOL vs HYD, 19th Match

Preview

Kolkata will be high on confidence when they take on Hyderabad in the 19th match of the Indian T20 League 2023. The game will be played at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, and the hosts will come into this game with a thumping win against the reigning champions, Gujarat. Hyderabad registered their first win of the tournament by defeating Punjab in their last fixture.

Kolkata comes into this encounter after two back-to-back wins; they play on their home ground, which gives them their 12th-man support. The Aiden Markram side doesn’t have a good record playing at this venue. The bowlers need to step up in order to provide the extra support needed in this match.

The game was in a no-win situation for the Nitish Rana side, but out of nowhere, Rinku Singh stepped up and hit five sixes in the last five balls when his side needed 28 runs to win. This was just like the memorable 49-all-out spell against the Bangalore side, which will stay as a permanent scar for the Gujarat side too. Now it’s up to Nitish Rana, the skipper, to keep up the winning momentum and get to a better position in the points table.

Rahmnullah Gurbaz makes the opening pair strong and has until now played good knocks for the Kolkata side. N Jagadeesan has to make a good partnership with him and utilise the powerplay in a proper way. Venkatesh, as an impact player, makes the middle order strong and played a thunderous knock against the defending champions in the last match. Andre Russell is a crucial element in the team and is looking out of form; once he gets his old rhythm back, the team would be a lot stronger and more confident than ever imagined.

Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, and Lockie Ferguson will have to keep the run flow in check. Narine and Chakravarthy are the prime bowlers who must give their best in order to switch games whenever necessary. Also, the young bowler, who has performed well since his debut a few games ago, is looking in good touch and must help his fellow spinners keep the run under control.

Aiden Markram’s side finally found their form in the previous game after two successive defeats. They were clinical with both the bat and the ball, getting an 8-wicket win over Punjab. They earned a victory over a team with red-hot form, and now they will focus on replicating their performance at Eden Gardens on Friday.

In the three games they played this season, the side has the highest opening partnership of 27 runs. Mayank Agarwal will have to take a stand along with Harry Brook. Ex-Kolkata batter Rahul Tripathi will have to play another good knock, just as he did in the last game. The middle order needs the support of Aiden Markram and Heinrich Klaasen. Washington Sundar and Marco Jansen need to take a stand for the lower middle order, which will require big hits from their sides.

Their bowlers will be under pressure in the match against the Kolkata side at their home stadium. With Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, and Nitish Rana being in sublime touch, the opponent bowlers will probably not have a good time throwing against them. Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Marco Jansen will need to get some early breakthroughs, along with Mayank Markande, who is in good form and is expected to trouble batters in the middle orders. T Natarajan, Umran Malik, and Washington Sundar must keep up the pressure on the batters to ensure a great win for their side.

Match Details

Match: KOL vs HYD, 19th Match, IND T20 League 2023

Date: Friday, April 14, 2023

Time: 07:30 PM

Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata

Pitch and Weather Report

The iconic Eden Gardens, Kolkata is one of the biggest venues in India with deep boundaries. It provides a flat wicket and allows batters to play their strokes on the up. There will be some assistance for the fast bowlers in the early stages of the game. Spin bowlers can prove handy during the middle overs and the big boundaries will offer them extra protection to experiment with their lines and lengths. 

Clear skies are forecasted on match day. 

KOL vs HYD Squads

KOL: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), N Jagadeesan, Nitish Rana (c), Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Shardul Thakur, Suyash Sharma, Lockie Ferguson, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Anukul Roy, Vaibhav Arora, Jason Roy, David Wiese, Kulwant Khejroliya, Harshit Rana, Mandeep Singh, Tim Southee, Venkatesh Iyer 

HYD: Mayank Agarwal, Harry Brook, Rahul Tripathi, Aiden Markram (c), Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Washington Sundar, Marco Jansen, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mayank Markande, Umran Malik, T Natarajan, Abdul Samad, Mayank Dagar, Upendra Yadav, Glenn Phillips, Akeal Hosein, Anmolpreet Singh, Adil Rashid, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Abhishek Sharma, Vivrant Sharma, Nitish Reddy, Sanvir Singh, Kartik Tyagi, Samarth Vyas

KOL vs HYD Probable Playing XIs

KOL: Nitish Rana (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Venkatesh Iyer (Impact Player), Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Shardul Thakur, Suyash Sharma, Lockie Ferguson, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy

HYD: Aiden Markram (c), Mayank Agarwal, Harry Brook, Rahul Tripathi, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Washington Sundar, Marco Jansen, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mayank Markande, Umran Malik, T Natarajan

Match Prediction 

Hyderabad finally opened their account in the season with a convincing win over Punjab. Aiden Makram and Co will be eager to continue their winning run in the competition. Kolkata on the other hand will be brimming with confidence after pulling off an incredible heist against Gujarat. They did the unthinkable against one of the formidable sides in the competition and will thus have their tails up. Considering the current form, team balance and tactical matchups, we fancy the hosts to win this game. 

Top Fantasy Picks

Rahmanullah Gurbaz: The wicketkeeper batter has started the tournament brightly. His counter-attacking approach at the top of the order has paid dividends for Kolkata. 

Varun Chakravarthy: In the previous game at the same venue, the mystery spinner was at his very best as he picked a four-fer. Not only was he successful in securing wickets but was also highly economical during the game. He will look to use the pitch conditions to his advantage. 

Rahul Tripathi: The explosive batter is coming into this game on the back of a match-winning 74 against Punjab. He looked good and in his element during his 48-ball stay. He is a key batter in this Hyderabad squad and skipper Makram will be hoping the 32-year-old does well. Besides his ball-striking prowess, Tripathi is also known for his fielding.

Umran Malik: The speedster ran through Punjab’s batting order in the last game. He is quick, accurate and has a knack for picking wickets. 

Risky Captaincy Choice

Mayank Markande is our pick for this segment. The 25-year-old played his first game of the campaign last Sunday and instantly turned heads with his match-defining performance. The young leggie picked 4 wickets in his very first game and conceded only 15 runs in 4 overs. You can play a gamble by assigning him as the captain of your fantasy team.  

Suggested Playing XI Real11 Fantasy Cricket

Team 1

Team 2