IPL 7:Match Preview Kolkata Knight Riders vs Delhi Daredevils

IPL 7 has got off to a sizzling start but not for Delhi’s Daredevils (so called?) , with a convincing defeat at the hands of the juggernauts from Bangalore. The KKR on the other hand have got off to a “picture-perfect” start. They stifled the defending champions with some discipline cricket. Riding on ‘unlike’ Kallis innings they posted a decent total and then it was the Narine show. KKR’s team this time around looks a real deal. Their bowling has no loop-holes while their batting may look vulnerable but they have got some real impact players like Pathan and Uthappa. If Gambhir can find his form then they look like the team to beat in this year’s edition.
On the other hand, Daredevils played just opposite to their name. There was no real aggression shown except for a few players and with their charismatic, flamboyant, talismanic etc etc…..skipper injured they looked completely out of sorts in the opening few overs. But for Duminy RCB might well have had to chase a double-digit score. Delhi’s bowling looks dependent on a couple of bowlers. Shami looked pretty sharp against Bangalore bowling with great pace and venom (I am still perplexed as to why he was left out of the final of the T-20 WC.CSK Quota I guess!!). He was the pick of their bowlers and troubled both the “Man of the Moment” (Virat) and “Villain of the moment (Uvi)” (Social media’s version?). On the batting front, only Duminy stood tall among all the carnage that was happening at the other end.
For Delhi (sans over the hill viru) to do something in this match Pietersen (KP) has to play (ok! even if with available arm) otherwise the picture looks bleak for Delhi. Murli Vijay showed glimpses of what he is capable of during his short stay against Bangalore and if KP isn’t deemed fit then he will have to stand up and deliver. Delhi has to look at it as a 16 over contest with Narine’s mystery becoming more and more difficult to unravel (Scotland Yard would find it difficult to decipher it). Apart from Narine they will have to counter the blistering pace and raw bounce of Morkel, guile of Jacques Kallis. So both on paper as well as current form KKR seems to be in the driving seat but after all it is T-20 Cricket. Will the Delhites show their Daredevilry??
Probable Team Line-ups:
Kolkate Knight Riders: Gautam Gambhir (c), Robin Uthappa, Jacques Kallis, Yusuf Pathan, Shakib Al Hasan, Manish Pandey, Umesh Yadav, Morne Morkel, Sunil Narine, Vinay Kumar, Piyush Chawla.
Delhi Daredevils: Mayank Agarwal, Murli Vijay, Kevin Pietersen/Neesham, JP Duminy , Ross Taylor,  Dinesh Karthik, Wayne Parnell, Shabhaz Nadeem, Jaydev Unadkat/Saurabh Tiwary, Rahul Sharma, Mohammed Shami.
Probable Outcome: KKR victory