IPL 2018 Qualifier 2, KKR vs SRH: Kolkata eye home benefit in today's match

In Qualifier 2 of Vivo Indian Premier League (IPL 2018) Kane Williamson-led Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will take on Dinesh Karthik's Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Friday. A two-time champion, KKR will be aiming to exploit SRH's recent run of poor form when the two teams square off in what promises to be a high-octane IPL Qualifier 2 match. KKR stormed into the IPL Qualifier 2 by defeating Rajasthan Royals by 25 runs at the same venue, while Sunrisers Hyderabad lost to Chennai Super Kings by 2 wickets in a nail-biting encounter in Mumbai in Qualifier 1. SRH got the benefit of being one of the top two teams in Vivo IPL points table and received a second shot at qualifying for the final tie, while Rajasthan, which entered the playoffs ranked fourth were knocked out.

KKR have ticked all the right boxes in theior past few IPL 2018 matches, with four wins on trot. Table-toppers Sunrisers, on the other hand, have slipped after finishing on top of the league table; they now have 4 consecutive lost matches behind them.

Call it complacency or the lack of performance from their middle order, SRH have lost four straight games, something that will be a cause for concern to Kane Williamson's team. Arguably the best bowling side of IPL 2018, with Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Siddharth Kaul and Sandeep Sharma delivering consistently along with the immensely talented Rashid Khan, Sunrisers will like to extract whatever juice is available from the Eden Gardens track.