It's eliminator time as Royal Challengers meet Super Giants in a knockout classic

The much-anticipated wait is all set to meet its conclusion as the Royal Challengers Bangalore square off against the Lucknow Super Giants to decide who will be playing flying to Ahmedabad. After intense drama throughout the group stages where things were dangling till the penultimate day of the group stages, Mumbai’s win over Delhi Capitals secured RCB’s residence in the top four.

The Challengers staged an excellent showdown in the last couple of games to stay in the hunt and eventually cross the line while the last three games for Lucknow haven’t been easy for the Giants. They lost two consecutive games against the Titans and the Royals while barely scraping through against the Knights.

For RCB, it has so far been a bumpy ride with fair shares of troughs and crests with the team occasionally hitting the dreamland while on instances, falling into unfamiliar territory with a collective fiasco forcing the best into retreat. However, the panache in the camp will be soaring sky-high with an emphatic win over the Titans who would finish as group-toppers in the league stages.

RCB will be riding high on some disciplined bowling while for the Giants it has been an excellent opening pair backed by some strong middle order batting order that has kept the team galvanized in the campaign.

Venue Watch:

Kolkata has always been kind to the batters and the spinners but with a forecast of rain, things may seem different. The sway that the batters would have savoured would be totally nullified if it pours, given the inclement conditions and the dank surface that would be a paradise for the bowlers. Given the innate turning conditions, if you would add a bit of moisture to it, it is like the deathbed for batters with the ball turning around venomously. If it doesn’t rain, then it would be a contest of the evens but if it does pour, whoever chases, could well walk out on top.

X Factors:

Faf du Plessis: The South African opener has conjured a commanding display over the span of the 12 playoff games that he has been a part of. He has amassed 348 runs at an average of 31.63 and a strike rate of 135.40. He has hammered three half-centuries that is also inclusive of his highest score of 96 runs which came against our opponents for tomorrow, LSG. More importantly, he is in form as he played an anchoring role that had authority stamped all over it against the Titans.

Virat Kohli: The former India and RCB skipper got back amongst runs in the preceding game where he would simply run riot against the Titans. He played a handful of rollicking strokes and it never felt that he was a man who had been going through a lean patch. It is needless to say that if he gets going, there is absolutely no stopping him from blowing the opposition into oblivion. In the span of the 12 play-off games that he has played so far, he has racked up 276 runs with two half-centuries starring a best of 70*.

Harshal Patel: Despite copping an unfortunate split in his right hand’s webbing, going by the latest news, if Harshal Patel is fit to be a part of the playoffs, he would be leading RCB with the ball in his arms. He has been in exemplary form throughout the tournament and his tally of 18 wickets at an economy rate of 7.68 has been one of the primary contributors towards RCB’s qualification into the playoffs.

Squads:

Royal Challengers Bangalore:

Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, Mohammed Siraj, Faf du Plessis, Harshal Patel, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dinesh Karthik, Josh Hazlewood, Shahbaz Ahmed, Anuj Rawat, Akash Deep, Mahipal Lomror, Finn Allen, Sherfane Rutherford, Jason Behrendorff, Suyash Prabhudesai, Chama Milind, Aneeshwar Gautam, Karn Sharma, David Willey, Rajat Patidar, Siddharth Kaul.

Lucknow Super Giants:

KL Rahul (c & wk), Quinton de Kock (wk), Manish Pandey, Deepak Hooda, Krunal Pandya, Evin Lewis, Marcus Stoinis, Jason Holder, Andrew Tye, Kyle Mayers, Avesh Khan, Dushmantha Chameera, Ravi Bishnoi, Ayush Badoni, Manan Vohra, Krishnappa Gowtham, Shahbaz Nadeem, Ankit Rajpoot, Mayank Yadav, Mohsin Khan, Karan Sharma.

Match Details:

Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Lucknow Super Giants

Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata

Date: 25th May 2022

Time: 7:30 PM IST