THE EDGE: The Edge previews Friday’s IPL clash between Kolkata Knight Riders v Punjab Kings with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
Kolkata Knight Riders v Punjab Kings
MATCH OVERVIEW:
The IPL continues on Betdaq Betting Exchange with Kolkata Knight Riders hosting Punjab Kings. This is very much a case of two sides moving in different directions; KKR have been superb so far at this IPL and we’ve had some of the best ball striking on show. While for Punjab, they are hanging around the bottom of the table with only two wins from eight games. The only positive to say about Punjab is that at least they haven’t been as bad as Royal Challengers Bengaluru but that’s not saying much!
KKR have only been beaten twice so far this IPL, and those losses came against Rajasthan Royals who top the table and CSK who are reigning champions. While the KKR batting can only be described as blockbuster – especially Sunil Narine and Andre Russell – their bowling is definitely their weak point. They put up 222/6 against RCB at the weekend but very nearly lost the game. Obviously the bowling is an area that Punjab can target – although they have been in the headlines for the wrong reasons with their batting recently. They made the decision to drop Jonny Bairstow; their star batter at the top of the order. In fairness, he has had a terrible IPL but obviously that’s a huge call.
The English players just aren’t delivering for Punjab so far. Liam Livingstone is another who could be winning games on his own but isn’t – it’s left to Sam Curran to carry a lot of pressure as the captain. He’s opened the batting the last two games and hasn’t gone well; his bowling was poor against Mumbai Indians too. KKR will be expecting to win here.
WEATHER AND PITCH WATCH:
Eden Gardens is an exceptionally good ground to watch on TV. It’s not a great stadium to visit however as we saw during the World Cup; the facilities aren’t great for fans but they still pack in for the IPL. It’s become a very high scoring ground recently – although it can hold 100,000 the playing surface isn’t actually that big. 60 meter boundaries by today’s standards are very small with the power hitting now. The first inning scores here this season have been; 208/7 (won), 161/7 (chased), 223/6 (chased) and 222/6 (won). The 208 only won by four runs and the 222 only won by one run – I’d probably lean towards chasing here!
RECOMMENDED BET:
With Punjab struggling with their batting and finding the right order, I’m confident on a KKR win here. They are trading 1.7 and that still offers some value in my opinion. It is an interesting game in the sense that bowling is a KKR weakness but the batting hasn’t been good for Punjab; that match up is likely going to decide the game. However, the KKR batting has been absolutely superb and they’re going to have very good batting conditions again here. With Punjab struggling with the bat, KKR can get the job done here.
The Edge Says:
Three points win Kolkata Knight Riders to beat Punjab Kings at 1.7 with Betdaq Exchange
View the market here -> https://betdaq.biz/KolPun
IN-RUNNING STRATEGY:
With this venue being so high scoring, it makes sense to avoid looking for trades on either bowling side. The 161 was chased in just 15.4 overs and with 223 chased here too, it’s definitely been a ground to support the batting side. Only one game has saw a batting side fail – which is a crazy thing to say for a 160 score. I would worry a little about the Punjab batting, they have had problems so the best trade here will be supporting the KKR batting when the time comes.
