Confident Rajasthan take on Kolkata Knight Riders, look to make it a hattrick of wins

The Rajasthan Royals will be keen to do what no other team in the Dream 11 IPL 2020 has managed to achieve - Win all of the first three games. Coming on the back of a thrilling pursuit, and a Rahul Tewatia story that will reverberate in the cricketing circles for ages, Royals will go into the game against the Knight Riders high on confidence. However, the team from Kolkata will have their own reasons to be optimistic, having overcome their opening day blues to have beaten Sunrisers Hyderabad in their second game of the tournament.

For the Rajasthan Royals, there is much reason to be upbeat. The form of Sanju Samson has been ominous in the first two games, clearing the boundary at will. Steve Smith has looked assured at the top, while Jos Buttler is yet to fire. Their batting firepower running down till 9 in the batting order has been a huge plus, with even the likes of Jofra Archer and Tom Curran capable of hitting the ball long. Their bowling may have suffered in the opening two games, but so has their opponents’ on a flat track such as Sharjah with an outfield that looks a miniature version of a cricket field.

Their opponents for the day in Kolkata Knight Riders will also have no reason to believe they are the second-best team among the two. The Knight Riders will draw confidence from the ease with which they overcame their opponents in the last game, Sunrisers Hyderabad. The emergence of Varun Chakravarthy should take some load off a struggling Kuldeep Yadav, while the return of Pat Cummins to his best will be a relief for the franchise. The batting unit completed a clinical performance, with Shubman Gill anchoring the chase, Nitish Rana supporting him through the middle, and then finished off perfectly by the England captain Eoin Morgan. 

The Royals will have their task cut out, having to now adjust their game to a fairly larger outfield of the Dubai International Stadium. The way they acclimatize from a six-hitting, 200+ scoring side to taking a more nuanced approach to their batting innings will be a major factor in deciding the outcome of the game. Much will depend on how the Royals' middle order will navigate the middle overs with at least two mystery spinners bowling in tandem. The Knight Riders will also be moving to a fresh venue; however having played at Abu Dhabi, they will not be needing to meddle with their approach as much as the Royals. With the Royals boasting of a top-heavy lineup, picking up wickets early may be the best way to conquer them. It will be interesting to see how Dinesh Karthik uses his trump cards in Pat Cummins and Sunil Narine.