IPL play-off qualifier 1: Kolkata Knight Riders vs Sunrisers Hyderabad tips and suggested bets

Let's start with a quick refresher on the format for the IPL play-off structure, which is weighted to reward teams that top the standings.

No 1 and No 2 in the table face each other for a place in the final, while the losing team gets another crack at reaching the final in the second qualifier where they will face the winners of the eliminator between teams No 3 and No 4, in this case the Rajasthan Royals and Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Since this play-off format was adopted a team from the top two has won all but two IPL trophies.

This season saw the Knight Riders finish on top of the table for the first time in their history. While it is also the first time ever that the Sunrisers have finished second and is also just their second time being involved in qualifier 1 after they topped the log in 2018.

In both of their title-winning seasons in 2012 and 2014, KKR won their initial qualifier and went on to win the final.

Statistically the team winning qualifier 1 has the greatest chance to go on to being crowned champions with the last instance of a team winning this match but going on to lose the final going down in 2017, since then six editions of the tournament have seen the qualifier 1 winners crowned as IPL champions.

 

Suggested bets

Unfortunately for KKR they have lost their top-order runs banker as Phil Salt has left the squad to join up with the England camp ahead of the T20 World Cup.

That leaves the mercurial Sunil Narine, who is their top runscorer, looking like the man who has to get the runs for his team.

However we would suggest that No 3 Venkatesh Iyer is the man most likely to end up as the top-scorer in this match for KKR.

Narine tends to hit paydirt roughly once every three innings or so and the patterns indicate that he might not have his best day.

 

 

When it comes to the bowlers who can do the business for KKR it is tempting to look at Narine again as well as Andre Russell, but the large ground at the Narendra Modi Stadium could play most into the hands of Varun Chakravarthy, the leg-spinner whose stock ball is the wrong'un.

In any team where Mitchell Starc takes the new ball he should be favourite to get the first wicket.

Travis Head has been the headline grabber at the top order for the Sunrisers but the real story of their campaign is that Abhishek Sharma is the true driver of success for this team.

Sharma should be your go-to when it comes to the top-scorer for the Sunrisers.

 

Predictions

Venkatesh Iyer to top-score for KKR

Varun Chakravarthy to take the most wickets for KKR

Mitchell Starc to take the first wicket for KKR

Abishek Sharma to score the most runs in the match