Preview
The in-form Kolkata side will face the struggling Punjab in match 45 of the Indian T20 League 2021. Kolkata have redeemed themselves superbly in this leg. They have so far won three out of four matches in this leg. The only match they lost was against Chennai and that too off the last ball. But they are needed to win all their remaining matches to make it to the playoffs.
The situation is not different for Punjab. They went down to Mumbai in the previous encounter comfortably and even after three in as many games wouldn’t guarantee them a place in the playoffs. They will have to depend on other results. KL Rahul would be hoping that his team steps up against Kolkata and carry the momentum from there on.
Match Details
Indian T20 League, 2021, Match 45: Kolkata vs Punjab
Date & Time: October 1, 2021; 7:30 PM IST
Venue – Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai.
Probable Playing XIs
Kolkata
Venkatesh Iyer, Shubman Gill, Rahul Tripathi, Eoin Morgan (C),Nitish Rana, Dinesh Karthik (WK), Andre Russell/Tim Southee, Sunil Narine, Sandeep Warrier, Varun Chakravarthy, Lockie Ferguson.
Punjab
KL Rahul (C & WK), Mandeep Singh/Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Deepak Hooda, Harpreet Brar, Nathan Ellis, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh.
Top Picks
Shubman Gill
Shubman Gill is getting starts but he is not being able to make it big. The pitch on offer for the previous game between Rajasthan and Bangalore in Dubai was a belter to bat on and we might get to see Gill displaying his range of strokes. The 22-year-old has registered scores of 48, 13, 9 and 30 in his last four outings and this could be his day with the bat.
Aiden Markram
Aiden Markram is only a replacement signing for Punjab but he has been excellent for them. In the three matches he’s played so far, the South African has got starts in all scoring 26, 27 and 42. With multiple left-handers in the Kolkata line-up, Markram’s off-spin will also be useful in this game.
Fantasy Team of 11 Players
KL Rahul (C), Mayank Agarwal, Aiden Markram, Rahul Tripathi, Shubman Gill, Chris Gayle, Venkatesh Iyer (VC), Sunil Narine, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Varun Chakravarthy.
2nd Innings Fantasy Tips
Case 1: If Kolkata is batting
Dinesh Karthik, Rahul Tripathi (VC), Shubman Gill (C), Eoin Morgan, Nitish Rana, Venkatesh Iyer, Sunil Narine, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Shami, Nathan Ellis.
Case 2- If Punjab is batting
KL Rahul (VC), Aiden Markram (C), Mandeep Singh, Chris Gayle, Nitish Rana, Venkatesh Iyer, Sunil Narine, Deepak Hooda, Tim Southee, Lockie Ferguson, Varun Chakravarthy.
