IPL match today, KKR vs LSG: Playing XI prediction, head-to-head, Eden Gardens pitch report, Kolkata weather update

Ajinkya Rahane-led Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will lock horns against Rishabh Pant's Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in match no 19 of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) at the iconic Eden Gardens on Tuesday.

For KKR, it has been a season of mixed returns so far. After early defeats to Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Mumbai Indians, the defending champions roared back to form in their last outing with a astounding win over Sunrisers Hyderabad.

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One area of concern continues to plague the Knight Riders is their misfiring opening partnership. The opening duo of Quinton de Kock and Sunil Narine has struggled to give them flying starts that Phil Salt provided last season. Their highest stand this season has been 44 runs while the openers have managed 4, 1, and 14 in the other games.

LSG are coming into this contest riding high after a 12-run win over Mumbai Indians in Lucknow. Mitchell Marsh has been striking the ball cleanly at the top, while Aiden Markram, after a quiet start to the season, returned to form with an impactful fifty against MI. However, Rishabh Pant's poor run thus far in the IPL has already sparked criticism from fans and experts alike.



KKR vs LSG : Pitch report

In the last season, Eden Gardens was one of the most batting-friendly venue. However in this year, Eden Gardens, usually a batting paradise, is favoring spinners due to a dry, slowing pitch. This match is being played on a new pitch. LSG all-rounder Shahbaz Ahmed has said in the pre-match press conference that there will be assistance for slower bowlers. He said: Looking at the pitch here (at Eden Gardens for tomorrow's game), and having seen how the pitch played here in the last game, it seems as if the ball will hold up a bit. I'm not sure if it'll turn a lot, but it will remain slow for sure. That's good for the bowlers."

KKR vs LSG: Weather report

According to AccuWeather, the temperature for Thursday, will be 33 degrees Celsius at the start of the match. The skies in Kolkata to be covered with intermittent clouds even as there is a negligible possibility of rain during the KKR vs LSG game at the Eden Gardens. Dew will not be a factor in the second innings.

KKR vs LSG head-to-head

LSG has a slight 3-2 edge over KKR. But at Eden Gardens, the two teams have been 1-1.

KKR vs LSG predicted playing XI

KKR: Quinton de Kock (wk), Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Moeen Ali, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy

Impact player: Vaibhav Arora

LSG: Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (c/wk), Ayush Badoni, David Miller, Abdul Samad, Shardul Thakur, Akash Deep, Avesh Khan, Digvesh Rathi

Impact player: Ravi Bishnoi

KKR vs LSG squads

Lucknow Super Giants Squad: Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Ayush Badoni, David Miller, Abdul Samad, Shardul Thakur, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Akash Deep, Avesh Khan, Ravi Bishnoi, Prince Yadav, Shahbaz Ahmed, Manimaran Siddharth, Akash Maharaj Singh, Mayank Yadav, Shamar Joseph, Arshin Kulkarni, Yuvraj Chaudhary, RS Hangargekar, Aryan Juyal, Matthew Breetzke, Himmat Singh

Kolkata Knight Riders Squad: Quinton de Kock(w), Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Moeen Ali, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy, Manish Pandey, Vaibhav Arora, Luvnith Sisodia, Anukul Roy, Rovman Powell, Anrich Nortje, Mayank Markande, Spencer Johnson, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Chetan Sakariya