IPL 2026: Knight Riders gear up to take on Titans at Eden Gardens

KKR skipper Ajinkya Rahane during a practice session on Friday; (right) Shubman Gill. Pics/PTI

With their remarkable resurgence ruined in Raipur, three-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) run the risk of being shut out of IPL-19 when they take on a marauding Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Eden Gardens on Saturday.

Wednesday's defeat to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) has pushed KKR to the edge of the precipice, and nothing short of a win will keep them in contention.

That is a most daunting task given that GT arrive with five wins on the trot.

The inability to present a fight against RCB despite putting up a challenging 192 will be a concern for a bowling unit. The absence of an injured Varun Chakravarthy did rob them of the familiar ‘squeeze' that he and Sunil Narine bring upon opposing batsmen, but the bigger worry will be the disintegration of the unit in spite of debutant Saurabh Dubey setting the tone with a two-run opening over. Chakravarthy bowled at the nets on Friday but the decision will be taken on the morrow.

Kartik Tyagi was asked if he would have preferred to bowl that second over to keep things tight. "Who bowls when is something we discuss and plan. Vaibhav [Arora] is better with the new ball and was thus given the job," the pacer responded. "Sometimes, things don't go in our favour."A wayward Arora conceded 18 runs in the second over and KKR lost the plot from there.

For GT, while Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan and Jos Buttler present an explosive top-order, Mohammed Siraj, Kagiso Rabada and Jason Holder have been among the wickets regularly to deny early momentum to the opposition. With the likes of Prasidh Krishna and Rashid Khan to follow, GT have a bowling unit capable of shutting out opponents.

It's just as well that KKR's batting runs deep and several key players have found form. KKR opener Finn Allen is back to his best and a great deal will depend on the Kiwi's performance.