Kolkata Knight Riders will face the Chennai Super Kings in a must-win clash at the Eden Gardens in the milestone clash for the venue in the IPL. The Knight Riders need to win each and every game they play from here onwards to stay in contention for the playoffs.
Kolkata’s Eden Gardens will be hosting its 100th match in the IPL as the Knight Riders get set to take on the Chennai Super Kings on Wednesday, May 7. Eden Gardens has been host to 91 group stage matches and eight games in the playoffs and knockouts (including the final) while the home team, the Knight Riders, has played 94 out of those 99 encounters. The venue will become the third one to host 100 or more IPL matches.
Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium is at the top with 124 matches at the venue, while Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium is in second place with 100 games. Eden will become the third as it hosts its final game of the league stage with the Knight Riders set to play RCB and Sunrisers Hyderabad away in their last two matches of the season.
Most matches to be hosted at one venue in the IPL
124 – Wankhede Stadium (Mumbai)
100 – M Chinnaswamy Stadium (Bengaluru)
99 – Eden Gardens (Kolkata)*
94 – Arun Jaitley Stadium (Delhi)
91 – MA Chidamabaram Stadium (Chennai)
KKR haven’t had an auspicious run at home this season, with just two wins out of six matches, with one being a rained-out clash against the Punjab Kings. Since the qualification is on the line, the Knight Riders have to win each of their remaining three matches and can’t afford a slip-up and hence, the defending champions will be keen to end their home run on a high before travelling to Hyderabad and Bengaluru for their final preliminary games.
With two wins in a row against the Delhi Capitals and the Rajasthan Royals, KKR have stayed in the hunt for a spot in the playoffs and with their senior men Sunil Narine and Andre Russell putting their hand up. Another such performance against the bottom-placed Chennai Super Kings on Wednesday would be the need of the hour for KKR and their fans.
