Kolkata Knight Riders vs Punjab Kings Prediction & Betting Tips -

Prediction published on 24/04/2024, 09:00  by Devesh Jaganath in Indian Premier League Predictions

The Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings will square off in match 42 of the 2024 Indian Premier League on Friday evening. The hosts are second in the league standings, while the visitors are ninth. The Knight Riders have been solid this season and headed into this match off the back of a thrilling one-run victory over the Royal Challengers Bangalore last Sunday. They successfully defended 222/6 with Shreyas Iyer top-scoring with 50(36) and Phil Salt blasting a quick-fore 48 off just 14 balls. Andre Russell picked up 3/25 with the ball, while Harshit Rana and Sunil Narine picked up two wickets each. With that result, KKR moved to ten points in the table and have the best net run rate in the competition of +1.206. The major strength of the hosts this season has been that they have not had to depend on specific players to perform, with the likes of Narine, Iyer, Russell and Rana all stepping up at different points. KKR lost the last match to this opponent last season but are the favorites in this one. 

Meanwhile, time is running thin for the Punjab Kings, and based on their recent record, they are likely to struggle to reach the playoffs. They head into this encounter following a three-wicket defeat to the Gujarat Titans. In that match, PBKS only managed to set a target of 142, with Prabhsimran Singh top-scoring with 35(21), while no other batsman managed more than 30 runs in their innings. Harshal Patel led the bowling attack with 3/15, and Liam Livingstone added 2/19. Patel is now up to third place in the leading wicket-takers standings, currently tied on 13 with Yuzvendra Chahal and current purple cap holder Jasprit Bumrah. Sam Curran and Kagiso Rabada have taken 11 and ten wickets in the competition, respectively. While the Kings' bowling attack has been impressive this season, they will need a much-improved performance from their batting order to have any chance against the high-scoring Knight Riders.