Kolkata vs. Rajasthan, IPL: Date, Time, Live Stream, TV and Preview

The Kolkata Knight Riders face the Rajasthan Royals for the first time in the 2015 Indian Premier League, with both in the playoff places.

However, the two teams also lost last time out, so they will be determined to put that behind them and regain some momentum.

Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata

Date: Sunday, April 26

Start time: 4 p.m. local time, 11:30 a.m. BST

Live on: Sony Six and Set Max (India), IMG (Caribbean), PCCW (Hong Kong), Maasranga TV (Bangladesh), Sky NZ (New Zealand), Sky Sports (UK), EMTV (Papua New Guinea), Measat (Malaysia), OSN Network (Middle East), StarHub (Singapore), Super Sports (Sub-Saharan Africa), Geo Super (Pakistan), Carlton Sports Network (Sri Lanka), Sportsnet (Canada), Willow TV (USA)

Weather: According to Weather.com, Kolkata will be at risk of some heavy showers, with temperatures reaching a high of 29 degrees Celsius.

Overview

Both teams come into this game on the back of recent losses, although they have managed to retain their places in the playoff spots.

Kolkata visited Sunrisers Hyderabad in a rain-affected clash and lost by 16 runs on the Duckworth/Lewis Method having been set 118 from 12 overs to win.

Hyderabad batted first and made 176-4 from their 20 overs, with Morne Morkel impressing for Kolkata with two wickets.

In reply, the Knight Riders tried hard to get to their target but lost wickets regularly and could only reach 101-4, led by 34 from Robin Uthappa.

Meanwhile, Rajasthan were by far second-best against Royal Challengers Bangalore as they lost by nine wickets.

The Royals batted first but could muster just 130-9 from their 20 overs, with only Steven Smith managing to pass 30.

Bangalore made light work of their target, thanks in large part to the efforts of Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers, with Shane Watson taking Rajasthan’s only wicket.

With both sides smarting after recent defeats, this game should hopefully see them both react and look to get back to winning ways.

Team News

Kolkata Knight Riders (from): Gautam Gambhir (capt), Sunil Narine, Robin Uthappa, Piyush Chawla, Yusuf Pathan, Shakib Al Hasan, Morne Morkel, Umesh Yadav, Manish Pandey, Pat Cummins, Ryan ten Doeschate, Suryakumar Yadav, Andre Russell, Veer Pratap Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, James Neesham, Brad Hogg, Sumit Narwal, Sheldon Jackson, Aditya Garhwal, Kishan Cariappa, Vaibhav Rawal

 
Rajasthan Royals (from): Shane Watson (capt), Ankit Sharma, Brainder Sran, Rajat Bhatia, Stuart Binny, Ben Cutting, James Faulkner, Deepak Hooda, Dhawal Kulkarni, Vikramjeet Malik, Chris Morris, Karun Nair, Abhishek Nayar, Ajinkya Rahane, Pardeep Sahu, Dinesh Salunkhe, Sanju Samson, Steven Smith, Tim Southee, Pravin Tambe, Rahul Tewatia, Rusty Theron, Sagar Trivedi, Dishant Yagnik

Key Players

Morne Morkel

South African seamer Morne Morkel is one of Kolkata’s leading and most consistent bowlers, and he will need to be on top form in this game.

Although the pitches may not be terribly well suited to him, Morkel has managed to take wickets and look threatening at times.

Shane Watson

Rajasthan will need a big contribution from captain Shane Watson if they are to be successful in this game.

The Royals skipper plays a crucial role in opening the batting and bowling early too and will be determined to make up for his team’s recent poor showing.