IPL 2025: KKR Playing XI vs DC- Match 48

The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are stuck in a do-or-die situation in the 2025 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). They are currently in the seventh position with three victories in five group-stage fixtures at a net run rate of +0.212.

Kolkata started the 18th season of the tournament irregularly, losing and winning each of the first three sets. However, they have yet to taste a victory in the last couple of weeks, and their chance of making the playoffs are getting slimmer day by day.

KKR will lock horns with the Delhi Capitals on April 29, 2025, at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.

IPL 2025: KKR Playing XI vs DC- Match 48

Openers- Sunil Narine and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk.)

Kolkata’s previous contest ended in a no-result due to persistent rain at the Eden Gardens in the second innings against the Punjab Kings, who were chasing a huge total of 202 runs.

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The PBKS head coach, Ricky Ponting, during the interaction with the commentators during the game, informed that they wanted to bat first on the surface, given how slow it was becoming in the second innings for the last few games.

Kolkata, a side that failed to chase down the same sort of score against Gujarat Titans at the same venue, was not expected to do the same in this new encounter. They could add just seven runs in their opening over before both openers, Sunil Narine and wicket-keeper Rahmanullah Gurbaz, left the field.

Middle order- Ajinkya Rahane (c), Venkatesh Iyer, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Rovman Powell

KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane is the only shining light for the side this year as he is the leading run-getter with 271 runs in eight innings at an average of 38.71 and a strike rate of 146.48, having on three half-centuries at the best score of 61 runs. He would hope for more contributions from the batting department, especially in forming partnerships.

Venkatesh Iyer hasn’t come to the party yet for the defending champions, and it won’t be long before his contribution won’t matter much for the side in this edition. Angkrish Raghuvanshi has done a decent job whenever he is required in the middle order.

Kolkata also decided to bring Rovman Powell into the side during the last encounter and should keep him for the next game against Delhi. The KKR management seems to have a few questions about Andre Russell.

Rinku Singh also needs to score runs with the bat. His role at number six is vital for the side to fire in the death overs.

Bowlers- Vaibhav Arora, Chetan Sakariya, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy (Impact)

Vaibhav Arora bowled decently in the last game for his ultimate figures of 2/34 in four overs, while the left-arm pace of Chetan Sakariya was bashed for 39 runs in three overs without any success. Harshit Rana also had a tough time with 0/27 in two overs.

One of the reasons for KKR's success in the league is how their spinners pick wickets in the middle overs. But both Narine and Varun ended with combined figures of 1/74 in eight overs at over nine.

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The fast bowlers will need to break the opening partnerships cheaply. Otherwise, it will be tough for the spinners on these surfaces to tackle the set batters.

KKR Predicted Playing XI vs DC- IPL 2025, Match 48

Sunil Narine, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ajinkya Rahane (c), Venkatesh Iyer, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Rovman Powell, Vaibhav Arora, Chetan Sakariya, Harshit Rana

Impact Sub: Varun Chakravarthy