Kolkata Knight Riders, owned by Bollywood actors Shah Rukh Khan and Juhi Chawla, is the third most successful team in the IPL, after Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians.
They have won the trophy twice - in 2012 and 2014 - under the leadership of former Indian opening batsman Gautam Gambhir. They also qualified for the playoffs in the 2011, 2016, 2017 and 2018 editions.
The team, which is presently led by wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik, has a good mixture of Indian talents like Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Shivam Mavi, Prasidh Krishna, Nitish Rana, Shubman Gill and Kuldeep Yadav as well as overseas T20 experts like Chris Lynn, Andre Russell, Carlos Braithwaite and Sunil Narine.
Squad:
Dinesh Karthik (C), Robin Uthappa (VC), Shubman Gill, Nitish Rana, Nikhil Naik, Rinku Singh, Chris Lynn, Joe Denly, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Anrich Nortje, Shrikant Mundhe, Carlos Braithwaite, Shivam Mavi, Piyush Chawla, Kuldeep Yadav, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Prasidh Krishna, Lockie Ferguson, Prithvi Raj Yarra and Harry Gurney.
Support staff:
Jacques Kallis (Head Coach)
Simon Katich (Assistant Coach)
Heath Streak (Bowling Coach)
Andrew Leipus (Physio)
Adrian Le Roux (Physical Trainer)
AR Srikkanth (Video Analyst)
Strength:
Caribbean mates Andre Russell and Carlos Braithwaite have proven their worth numerous times in the shortest format. Their hard-hitting abilities, along with bowling and fielding skills, will give KKR the edge in crunch moments.
The Indian core comprising Karthik, Gill and Rana will be KKR's batting backbone. Karthik's superb T20 form for India in the last one year and Gill's consistency in domestic cricket ever since his U-19 World Cup successes will let the likes of Lynn, Narine and Joe Denly stick to their destructive avatars.
Last year, KKR's key weakness was their new-ball attack. While their marquee Aussie recruit Mitchell Starc didn't participate in the tournament due to injury, his countryman Mitchell Johnson was far from his best. This time around, the franchise has picked English pacer Harry Gurney and New Zealand's Lockie Ferguson.
While Gurney (10 wickets in nine games, with an economy of 7.17), with his arsenal of slower balls and cutters, helped Melbourne Renegades win the 2018/19 Big Bash League, Ferguson has become New Zealand's go-to bowler in the middle overs with a natural ability to bowl yorkers and bouncers, while varying his pace.
The spin department will be led by veterans Piyush Chawla and Caribbean wizard Sunil Narine but all eyes will be on chinaman Kuldeep Yadav, who will be eyeing the IPL to get some more useful match practice, before heading to England for the ICC World Cup in a couple of months.
Weakness:
Robin Uthappa, a Karnataka veteran and one of the leading run-scorers in the IPL (4086 runs in 165 matches, with an average of 28.57 and a strike rate of 131.84), will be making his comeback after a prolonged injury. In the last edition, he was completely off-colour, scoring just 351 runs in 16 games.
While he got starts in a few games, his tendency to be ultra-aggressive brought about the right-hander's downfall. This year too, he is expected to be one of KKR's vital batting cogs, with added wicketkeeping responsibilities. The Kolkata franchise will be hoping for Robbie's quick revival and a repeat of his 2014 performance if they want to win their third trophy.
KKR will also be hoping their Indian pacers come good. While Prasidh Krishna was their find in the 2018 edition, U-19 sensation Shivam Mavi, despite showing promise, ended the tournament with a high economy rate. With Kamlesh Nagarkoti set for his IPL debut, it will be interesting to see how these new-ball bowlers use their experience in the last edition to showcase their skills this time around.
Prediction:
The men in purple and yellow have featured in the play-off stages in the last three editions and are expected to repeat the same this year too, despite not having too many superstars in the team. If they manage to control their nerves at the business end of the competition, a third title is not beyond them.
Best XI:
Sunil Narine
Chris Lynn
Robin Uthappa
Shubman Gill
Nitish Rana
Andre Russell
Dinesh Karthik (C)
Kuldeep Yadav
Piyush Chawla
Prasidh Krishna
Lockie Ferguson
Schedule:
March 24-KKR vs SRH
March 27-KKR vs KXIP
March 30: DC vs KKR
April 5: RCB vs KKR
History:
2008: 6th
2009: 8th
2010: 6th
2011: 4th
2012: Champions
2013: 7th
2014: Champions
2015: 5th
2016: 4th
2017: 3rd
2018: 3rd