Form concerns for Capitals against resurgent Knight Riders
Capitals wait on Stoinis availability; Knight Riders may prefer Shakib over Russell again in knockout
Hemant Brar
12-Oct-2021
Big picture
Kolkata Knight Riders have been on a fairytale ride since the UAE leg of the tournament began. Their top-order batters have scored consistently at a brisk pace and their spinners have stifled oppositions on sluggish tracks. Even though Eoin Morgan hasn't struck form with the bat, he has led Knight Riders to six wins in the last eight matches. Now they are in Qualifier 2, one step away from the final.
Meanwhile, Delhi Capitals have been the most consistent IPL side in recent years - they are the only ones to qualify for the playoffs in each of the last three seasons. The key to their success has been identifying their best XI early and changing it only when forced to do so.
This season, Capitals topped the league stage despite missing Marcus Stoinis for five games. But after their defeat to Chennai Super Kings in Qualifier 1, cracks seem to have emerged in their line-up. Suddenly, in the absence of Stoinis, their balance looks comprised, while R Ashwin's bowling form is giving them headaches. Can they regroup quickly and make it to their second successive final?
The chasing teams have won five out of seven games in Sharjah so far this season. Moreover, four of Capitals' five losses this season have come when batting first, while Knight Riders have won on all five occasions they have chased during the UAE leg of the tournament. So it will not be a surprise if both teams are keen to bowl first.
In the news
Andre Russell is still recovering from his hamstring injury. According to West Indies coach Phil Simmons, Russell has been batting in the Knight Riders nets and is "running at a certain level". But given the slow nature of the Sharjah surface, Knight Riders could continue with Shakib Al Hasan even if Russell regains full fitness in the next 24 hours.
Rishabh Pant had hoped for Stoinis to be fit for Qualifier 1. That didn't happen but Capitals will be keeping a close eye on him. If available, Stoinis will replace Tom Curran in the side.
Likely XIs
Delhi Capitals: 1 Prithvi Shaw, 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Shreyas Iyer, 4 Rishabh Pant (capt & wk), 5 Shimron Hetmyer, 6 Marcus Stoinis/Tom Curran, 7 Axar Patel, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Kagiso Rabada, 10 Anrich Nortje, 11 Avesh Khan
Kolkata Knight Riders: 1 Shubman Gill, 2 Venkatesh Iyer, 3 Rahul Tripathi, 4 Nitish Rana, 5 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 6 Eoin Morgan (capt), 7 Shakib Al Hasan, 8 Sunil Narine, 9 Lockie Ferguson, 10 Varun Chakravarthy, 11 Shivam Mavi
Strategy punt
Rana, though, has struggled against Axar Patel. The left-arm spinner has dismissed him twice in 22 balls while conceding only 23 runs. So it will be interesting to see how Capitals use their spinners.
Stats that matter
Hemant Brar is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo