IPL 2024 match 42 will showcase the in-form Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) battling the struggling Punjab Kings (PBKS). It happens at the iconic Eden Gardens on Friday, April 26.
The Knight Riders have been consistently superb, piling on 200-plus totals due to their powerful batting lineup. They aim to maximize their home advantage at the Eden Gardens, a pitch favoring batters with its flat nature.
Having said that, KKR has some injury worries, with Mitchell Starc and Nitish Rana uncertain for the encounter.
PBKS need a major change. Their defeats stretch back four games. Shikhar Dhawan also deals with injury pain. Captain Dhawan’s hurt shoulder keeps him away.
PBKS batting contains some powerful hitters: Liam Livingstone, Shashank Singh, Ashutosh Sharma. Despite difficulties, their batting shines. Harshal Patel, joint highest wicket-taker, key bowling strength. Bowling may struggle, but batting can compensate with big hits.
Ahead of tonight’s match, here are three potential landmarks for the KKR versus PBKS.
1. Varun Chakravarthy could become the third-highest wicket-taker for KKR
The next game is Varun Chakravarthy’s shot to join the upper tier of KKR’s highest wicket-takers. At present, he has taken sixty-nine wickets in sixty-two matches, placing him fourth. If he secures just three more dismissals, he will surpass Piyush Chawla (who has seventy-one wickets), becoming KKR’s third-highest wicket-taker ever.
Across his sixty-two appearances for KKR, Chakravarthy has captured sixty-nine wickets at a remarkable economy rate of 7.57, with a strike rate of 20.66. This impressive consistency underscores his value.
2. Shreyas Iyer could complete 3000 runs in IPL
Shreyas Iyer leads Kolkata Knight Riders as captain. He’s near a milestone this match.
With 2,966 runs from 108 IPL innings, Iyer needs a mere 34 runs to reach 3,000 tournament runs. This impressive achievement would place him among only 18 Indian batsmen to reach that lofty mark in IPL history.
While the majority of his runs (2375) came with the Delhi Capitals (DC), Iyer has already made a substantial contribution (591 runs) to KKR. A great performance against PBKS might help him accomplish this milestone.
3. Sunil Narine could become the bowler with most wickets against a single IPL team
As well, the impending battle gives Sunil Narine a fantastic chance to write his name even deeper into IPL history. A top-class spinner, widely admired in the league, Narine stands near achieving a truly remarkable accomplishment.
He currently has 33 wickets in just 24 matches against PBKS, trailing just Umesh Yadav (35 wickets) for the most wickets taken by a bowler against a single IPL opponent.
With three more wickets tonight, Narine would not only beat Yadav, but also become the bowler with the most wickets against a single side in IPL history.